Vest Financial LLC Invests $768,000 in Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPB)

Vest Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPB - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 10,731 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $768,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Man Group plc lifted its position in Spectrum Brands by 160.5% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 320,178 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,052,000 after purchasing an additional 197,263 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Spectrum Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $16,606,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in shares of Spectrum Brands by 403.9% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 233,800 shares of the company's stock worth $19,754,000 after buying an additional 187,400 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Spectrum Brands by 2,541.2% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 148,698 shares of the company's stock worth $12,563,000 after acquiring an additional 143,068 shares during the period. Finally, Callodine Capital Management LP raised its position in Spectrum Brands by 29.8% during the fourth quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP now owns 527,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,568,000 after acquiring an additional 121,000 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered their price objective on Spectrum Brands from $106.00 to $86.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Spectrum Brands from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Spectrum Brands from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Spectrum Brands has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO David M. Maura sold 66,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.53, for a total transaction of $4,324,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 723,607 shares of the company's stock, valued at $47,417,966.71. This represents a 8.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.60% of the company's stock.

Spectrum Brands Price Performance

NYSE SPB traded up $0.26 on Monday, hitting $56.11. The company had a trading volume of 416,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 417,286. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.79, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.93. Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.55 and a 12-month high of $96.62. The company's fifty day moving average price is $61.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.74.

Spectrum Brands (NYSE:SPB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.67). The company had revenue of $675.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $701.00 million. Spectrum Brands had a return on equity of 6.44% and a net margin of 4.01%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. will post 5.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Spectrum Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Spectrum Brands's payout ratio is currently 89.95%.

Spectrum Brands Profile

Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc operates as a branded consumer products and home essentials company in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific regions. It operates through three segments: Home and Personal Care; Global Pet Care; and Home and Garden. The Home and Personal Care segment provides home appliances under the Black & Decker, Russell Hobbs, George Foreman, PowerXL, Emeril Legasse, Copper Chef, Toastmaster, Juiceman, Farberware, and Breadman brands; and personal care products under the Remington brand.