Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Standard Motor Products shares opened lower, falling from a prior close of $36.67 to $35.25 before last trading at $35.8950.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive: two analysts rate the stock Buy and one Hold, resulting in a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $49 average price target.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations with $1.40 earnings per share and $526.72 million in revenue, while maintaining a quarterly dividend of $0.33, equivalent to a 3.7% annual yield.

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $36.67, but opened at $35.25. Standard Motor Products shares last traded at $35.8950, with a volume of 36,193 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SMP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Standard Motor Products from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Standard Motor Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Standard Motor Products currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $49.00.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.00 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.17. The company has a market cap of $807.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 0.85.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The auto parts company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.01. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The company had revenue of $526.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $511.68 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Standard Motor Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.93%.

Insider Transactions at Standard Motor Products

In related news, EVP Dale Burks sold 9,051 shares of Standard Motor Products stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.71, for a total value of $350,364.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 56,955 shares in the company, valued at $2,204,728.05. This trade represents a 13.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,349 shares of company stock valued at $712,146. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SMP. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC bought a new stake in shares of Standard Motor Products in the third quarter valued at approximately $448,000. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Standard Motor Products in the third quarter worth $37,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 89.1% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,159 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 546 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in Standard Motor Products during the second quarter worth $686,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new position in Standard Motor Products during the second quarter worth $635,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company's stock.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc NYSE: SMP manufactures and distributes replacement parts for the automotive aftermarket. The company supplies components used to maintain and repair passenger vehicles, light trucks, and other vehicles, serving professional repair shops, parts distributors, and do-it-yourself customers.

Its product portfolio includes engine-management components such as ignition, fuel, emissions, and sensor products, as well as temperature-control parts, including air-conditioning and cooling-system components.

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