Ariel Investments LLC Increases Stock Position in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. $SSD

Key Points

• Ariel Investments LLC increased its stake in Simpson Manufacturing by 3.4% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 0.27% of the company valued at around $17.5 million.
• Simpson Manufacturing recently reported earnings of $2.47 EPS, beating estimates, and a quarterly revenue of $631.06 million, reflecting a 5.7% year-over-year increase.
• The company plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.29 per share, with the next payment scheduled for October 23rd, representing a 0.6% dividend yield.

Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. (NYSE:SSD - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 111,496 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,668 shares during the quarter. Ariel Investments LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Simpson Manufacturing worth $17,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Simpson Manufacturing in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Simpson Manufacturing in the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. CWM LLC grew its position in Simpson Manufacturing by 39.1% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 331 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Simpson Manufacturing by 1,070.0% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 351 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in Simpson Manufacturing during the first quarter valued at about $72,000. Institutional investors own 93.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Simpson Manufacturing

In other news, EVP Michael Andersen sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.13, for a total value of $196,130.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,531,775.30. This represents a 11.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeremy Gilstrap sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.27, for a total transaction of $445,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,389,436.38. The trade was a 24.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $188.50.

Simpson Manufacturing Stock Performance

Shares of SSD traded up $2.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $195.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 236,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 237,674. The company has a market cap of $8.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 3.37 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $163.69. Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $137.35 and a 52-week high of $197.82.

Simpson Manufacturing (NYSE:SSD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The construction company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $631.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $601.80 million. Simpson Manufacturing had a net margin of 14.53% and a return on equity of 17.72%. The company's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. will post 8.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simpson Manufacturing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. Simpson Manufacturing's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.80%.

Simpson Manufacturing Profile

Simpson Manufacturing Co, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, engineers, manufactures, and sells structural solutions for wood, concrete, and steel connections. The company offers wood construction products, including connectors, truss plates, fastening systems, fasteners and shearwalls, and pre-fabricated lateral systems for use in light-frame construction; and concrete construction products comprising adhesives, specialty chemicals, mechanical anchors, carbide drill bits, powder actuated tools, fiber-reinforced materials, and other repair products for use in concrete, masonry, and steel construction, as well as grouts, coatings, sealers, mortars, fiberglass and fiber-reinforced polymer systems, and asphalt products for use in concrete construction repair, and strengthening and protection products.