Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. (NYSE:SSD) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts are cautiously neutral on Simpson Manufacturing, with five firms averaging a “Hold” rating; three rate it Hold and two rate it Buy, and the consensus 12-month price target is $214.75.
• The company beat quarterly expectations on both earnings and revenue, reporting EPS of $2.13 versus $1.84 expected and revenue of $587.96 million versus $550.08 million forecast.
• Simpson Manufacturing raised its quarterly dividend to $0.30 per share from $0.29, payable July 23, bringing the annualized payout to $1.20 and the yield to about 0.6%.

Shares of Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. (NYSE:SSD - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $214.75.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SSD. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $216.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Stephens boosted their price target on Simpson Manufacturing from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Simpson Manufacturing from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Simpson Manufacturing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th.

Simpson Manufacturing Price Performance

Simpson Manufacturing stock traded up $0.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $188.86. 178,276 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 343,441. Simpson Manufacturing has a one year low of $156.32 and a one year high of $213.49. The stock has a market cap of $7.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $192.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $185.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 3.40.

Simpson Manufacturing (NYSE:SSD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The construction company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.29. Simpson Manufacturing had a return on equity of 17.72% and a net margin of 14.92%.The business had revenue of $587.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $550.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Simpson Manufacturing will post 9.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simpson Manufacturing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a boost from Simpson Manufacturing's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Simpson Manufacturing's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.07%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Simpson Manufacturing by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 13,037 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,729,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Simpson Manufacturing by 33.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Simpson Manufacturing by 41.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 387 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Simpson Manufacturing by 31.5% during the 1st quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 79,773 shares of the construction company's stock worth $13,691,000 after acquiring an additional 19,097 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Simpson Manufacturing by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 291,314 shares of the construction company's stock worth $49,995,000 after acquiring an additional 11,272 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.68% of the company's stock.

Simpson Manufacturing Company Profile

Simpson Manufacturing Co, Inc, through its Simpson Strong-Tie® brand, is a leading global supplier of structural building products. The company specializes in the design, testing, manufacture and supply of connectors, anchors, fasteners and lateral systems that enhance the safety and performance of wood, concrete and masonry structures. Its product portfolio also includes repair and strengthening systems, concrete reinforcement and high-performance adhesives used in residential, commercial and industrial construction projects.

Founded in 1956 by Barclay Simpson in Oakland, California, Simpson Manufacturing has grown from a single product business into a diversified manufacturer with worldwide operations.

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