Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Smith & Wesson Brands Call Options (NASDAQ:SWBI)

Key Points

• Unusually heavy call buying: Traders bought 2,778 Smith & Wesson call options on Thursday, nearly 300% above the stock’s typical daily call volume, signaling a sharp rise in bullish betting.
• Strong quarterly results: Smith & Wesson reported fiscal Q4 EPS of $0.36 and revenue of $178.4 million, both above estimates, with revenue rising 26.7% year over year.
• Positive outlook signals: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, and Lake Street Capital raised its price target to $16.50 while reiterating a buy rating.

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 2,778 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 298% compared to the typical daily volume of 698 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smith & Wesson Brands

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Millennium Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $7,558,000. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in Smith & Wesson Brands by 166.1% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 753,964 shares of the company's stock worth $7,411,000 after acquiring an additional 470,602 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,311,503 shares of the company's stock worth $12,945,000 after acquiring an additional 265,370 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 41.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 712,708 shares of the company's stock worth $6,642,000 after acquiring an additional 208,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 159.3% during the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 318,026 shares of the company's stock worth $3,139,000 after purchasing an additional 195,390 shares in the last quarter. 59.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smith & Wesson Brands Price Performance

SWBI stock traded up $2.42 during trading on Thursday, hitting $16.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,872,934 shares, compared to its average volume of 583,704. Smith & Wesson Brands has a fifty-two week low of $7.73 and a fifty-two week high of $17.56. The company has a current ratio of 4.50, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $14.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.82. The company has a market cap of $718.29 million, a P/E ratio of 71.73 and a beta of 0.90.

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 17th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $178.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $155.27 million. Smith & Wesson Brands had a return on equity of 3.07% and a net margin of 2.24%.The firm's revenue was up 26.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.20 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Smith & Wesson Brands will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Smith & Wesson Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Smith & Wesson Brands's dividend payout ratio is presently 226.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on SWBI. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Smith & Wesson Brands in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Lake Street Capital lifted their price target on shares of Smith & Wesson Brands from $14.00 to $16.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Smith & Wesson Brands from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.50.

Key Headlines Impacting Smith & Wesson Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Smith & Wesson Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lake Street Capital raised its price target on Smith & Wesson Brands to $16.50 from $14.00 and reiterated a buy rating, implying additional upside from the current share price. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Smith & Wesson reported fiscal Q4 EPS of $0.36 versus $0.23 expected, and revenue of $178.4 million versus $155.3 million expected, driven by stronger handgun sales and improving profitability. Earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, signaling ongoing cash generation and returning capital to shareholders. Seeking Alpha article
• Positive Sentiment: Management said it expects fiscal 2027 revenue to grow in the mid-single digits and plans about $20 million in incremental Springfield capex, which suggests confidence in future demand and capacity expansion. MSN article
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors also have the Q4 2026 earnings call transcript and press release to review for more detail on margins, demand trends, and management’s outlook. Newsfile release
• Negative Sentiment: A prior downgrade note had argued the stock’s recent run-up left less near-term upside and pointed to longer-term industry softness, including declining background checks and weaker long-gun demand. Seeking Alpha article

About Smith & Wesson Brands

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc is a leading American manufacturer of firearms and related products, designing, producing and marketing a broad array of handguns, long guns and shooting accessories. The company’s portfolio includes revolvers, semi-automatic pistols and rifles under well-known brands such as M&P® (Military & Police) and Performance Center®, which are used by military, law enforcement, commercial and private customers. In addition to complete firearms, Smith & Wesson offers suppressors, optics mounts, holsters and other shooting accessories to support a full spectrum of professional and recreational shooting activities.

Founded in 1852 by Horace Smith and Daniel B.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.