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

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 858,184 shares, a growth of 19.0% from the January 29th total of 721,415 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 122,896 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.0 days. Approximately 4.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 4.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 122,896 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.0 days.

Insider Transactions at Standard Motor Products

In other news, VP Ray Nicholas sold 9,093 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.01, for a total value of $345,624.93. Following the sale, the vice president owned 40,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,543,548.09. This represents a 18.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 5.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,386,382 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $51,089,000 after buying an additional 4,927 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Standard Motor Products by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,101,199 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $40,579,000 after acquiring an additional 36,688 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its position in Standard Motor Products by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 980,264 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $36,123,000 after acquiring an additional 39,710 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Standard Motor Products by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 826,471 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $30,455,000 after acquiring an additional 5,319 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 503,039 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $18,539,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SMP. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Standard Motor Products in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.00.

Standard Motor Products Stock Down 1.1%

SMP traded down $0.43 on Wednesday, hitting $38.53. The company had a trading volume of 125,120 shares, compared to its average volume of 135,030. The stock has a market capitalization of $853.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $40.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.45. Standard Motor Products has a 12-month low of $21.38 and a 12-month high of $46.00.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The auto parts company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.11. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 13.15% and a net margin of 2.31%.The business had revenue of $385.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $385.91 million. Analysts predict that Standard Motor Products will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This is a boost from Standard Motor Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.35%.

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.