Weiss Asset Management LP Makes New $4.71 Million Investment in Turning Point Brands, Inc. $TPB

Key Points

• Weiss Asset Management bought a new 54,248-share stake in Turning Point Brands valued at approximately $4.71 million, while institutional investors collectively owned 96.12% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: Turning Point Brands has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $113.50, compared with a recent share price of $76.30.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.76 in earnings per share versus the $0.68 consensus estimate and revenue of $124.28 million, up 16.8% year over year. It also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share.

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Turning Point Brands, Inc. (NYSE:TPB - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 54,248 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,708,000. Weiss Asset Management LP owned about 0.28% of Turning Point Brands as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Guardian Point Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Turning Point Brands by 114.6% in the 1st quarter. Guardian Point Capital LP now owns 125,000 shares of the company's stock worth $10,849,000 after purchasing an additional 66,761 shares during the period. Aristides Capital LLC grew its holdings in Turning Point Brands by 19.9% during the first quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 103,164 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,954,000 after purchasing an additional 17,154 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Turning Point Brands by 46.5% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 68,676 shares of the company's stock worth $5,960,000 after buying an additional 21,805 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Turning Point Brands by 25.8% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,053 shares of the company's stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Turning Point Brands in the first quarter valued at $3,472,000. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Turning Point Brands

In related news, CAO Brian Wigginton sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.67, for a total transaction of $366,680.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 9,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $846,114.10. This represents a 30.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on TPB shares. BTIG Research started coverage on Turning Point Brands in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $103.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised Turning Point Brands from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Compass Point set a $103.00 price objective on Turning Point Brands in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings cut Turning Point Brands from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Turning Point Brands from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $113.50.

Turning Point Brands Stock Up 0.2%

Turning Point Brands stock opened at $76.30 on Monday. Turning Point Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.80 and a 1-year high of $146.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.95 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 5.87, a quick ratio of 4.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.39.

Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.08. Turning Point Brands had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 11.53%.The firm had revenue of $124.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $115.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Turning Point Brands, Inc. will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Turning Point Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 19th were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 18th. Turning Point Brands's payout ratio is presently 10.88%.

Turning Point Brands Profile

Turning Point Brands, Inc NYSE: TPB is a U.S.-based consumer products company focused on the manufacture, marketing and distribution of smokeless tobacco, vaping and cigar products. Headquartered in Old Hickory, Tennessee, the company serves retail outlets across all 50 states through a direct-store-delivery network and select third-party distributors. Turning Point Brands operates two reporting segments—Smokeless Products and Cigar—and leverages its logistics capabilities to offer a broad portfolio of brands and SKUs.

In its Smokeless Products segment, Turning Point Brands produces moist smokeless tobacco under leading brand names such as Grizzly, Kodiak and Stoker's.

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