Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. $SPB Shares Sold by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management reduced its Spectrum Brands stake by 2.6% in the first quarter, but still owned 2.34 million shares worth about $172.3 million, or roughly 10.08% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Spectrum Brands has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $86 average price target, though some firms recently cut targets or downgraded the stock.
• The company posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.25 and revenue of $708.9 million, and it also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, yielding about 2.2% annually.

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SPB - Free Report) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,338,423 shares of the company's stock after selling 63,525 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned approximately 10.08% of Spectrum Brands worth $172,342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Spectrum Brands by 7,237.5% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 587 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Spectrum Brands by 96.9% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 630 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Spectrum Brands by 111.7% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 635 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Spectrum Brands in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Spectrum Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of Spectrum Brands in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Spectrum Brands from $100.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Spectrum Brands from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Spectrum Brands from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David M. Maura bought 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $72.85 per share, for a total transaction of $182,125.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 790,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,603,077.80. The trade was a 0.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Spectrum Brands Stock Performance

Shares of SPB opened at $86.36 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.64. The business's fifty day moving average price is $81.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.42. Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $49.99 and a 12-month high of $88.14.

Spectrum Brands (NYSE:SPB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.21. Spectrum Brands had a net margin of 4.47% and a return on equity of 8.23%. The firm had revenue of $708.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $676.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Spectrum Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Spectrum Brands's dividend payout ratio is 35.88%.

Spectrum Brands Profile

Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc is a global consumer products company that develops and markets a diverse portfolio of branded household and personal care products. Organized into four principal business segments—Hardware & Home Improvement, Home & Garden, Pet, and Appliances & Personal Care—the company offers a broad range of items including security and plumbing solutions, small electric appliances, grooming tools, and pet care accessories. Its hardware division features well-known brands such as Kwikset, Baldwin and Pfister, while the home appliance segment is anchored by names like Russell Hobbs and Remington.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.