Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 737,200 shares, a drop of 13.5% from the April 30th total of 852,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 212,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days. Currently, 3.5% of the company's stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded Standard Motor Products from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Standard Motor Products

In other news, EVP Dale Burks sold 11,005 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.20, for a total value of $299,336.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,546,592. This represents a 16.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 5.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in Standard Motor Products by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 13,854 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $345,000 after buying an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Standard Motor Products by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 128,896 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $3,213,000 after acquiring an additional 9,979 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in Standard Motor Products by 320.0% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 64,037 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,596,000 after purchasing an additional 48,790 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 114,036 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $2,843,000 after purchasing an additional 3,352 shares during the period. Finally, Dean Capital Management grew its position in Standard Motor Products by 28.1% in the 1st quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 67,537 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $1,684,000 after purchasing an additional 14,812 shares during the last quarter. 81.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

SMP traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $29.24. 132,526 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 169,320. The stock has a market cap of $642.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.05 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Standard Motor Products has a 12 month low of $21.38 and a 12 month high of $35.92.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The auto parts company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.37. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company had revenue of $413.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $394.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Standard Motor Products will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. This is a boost from Standard Motor Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Standard Motor Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.57%.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc manufactures and distributes replacement automotive parts in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Vehicle Control, Temperature Control, and Engineered Solutions segments. The company provides components for the ignition, emissions, and fuel delivery systems, such as air injection and induction components, air management valves, regulators and solenoids, exhaust gas recirculation components, fuel injectors and related components, fuel valves, ignition coils, connectors and sockets, modules, pumps, relays and fuses, starting and charging system parts, and vapor and purge components.

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