Wall Street Zen Downgrades Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) to Hold

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Standard Motor Products to “Hold” from “Buy.” Despite the downgrade, the stock retains a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with analysts’ average price target at $49.
• Standard Motor Products reported quarterly EPS of $1.40, narrowly exceeding estimates, while revenue of $526.72 million topped the $511.68 million consensus forecast.
• Shares recently traded at $40.84, up 3.8%, while institutional investors own 81.26% of the company; a company vice president separately sold 5,822 shares valued at about $231,425.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on SMP. Weiss Ratings raised Standard Motor Products from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Zacks Research lowered Standard Motor Products from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Standard Motor Products currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $49.00.

Standard Motor Products Trading Up 3.8%

Shares of Standard Motor Products stock opened at $40.84 on Friday. Standard Motor Products has a 12-month low of $34.27 and a 12-month high of $46.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $912.30 million, a PE ratio of 18.23 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50-day moving average of $38.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.87.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Standard Motor Products

In other news, VP Ray Nicholas sold 5,822 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.75, for a total value of $231,424.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 35,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,404,248.25. The trade was a 14.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Standard Motor Products

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMP. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 6,142 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $226,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Standard Motor Products by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 32,443 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,196,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 6,946 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 76.7% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 949 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 11,679 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.26% of the company's stock.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc, headquartered in Long Island City, New York, is a leading manufacturer and distributor of aftermarket and original equipment automotive parts. Since its founding in 1919, the company has focused on engineering, testing, and supplying ignition and temperature management products for passenger cars and light trucks. Its product lineup includes ignition coils, spark plug wires, sensors, switches, heating and air conditioning controls, and related electronic components.

The company operates through two primary segments: Engine Management and Temperature Control.

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