Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $36.67, but opened at $35.25. Standard Motor Products shares last traded at $35.8950, with a volume of 36,193 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on SMP shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Standard Motor Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 16th. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $54.00 price target on shares of Standard Motor Products in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Standard Motor Products from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.00.

Standard Motor Products Stock Up 1.7%

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.18. The company has a market capitalization of $827.72 million, a P/E ratio of 16.54 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The auto parts company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.01. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 2.78%. The company had revenue of $526.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $511.68 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Standard Motor Products news, EVP Dale Burks sold 5,798 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.00, for a total transaction of $226,122.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,623. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,349 shares of company stock worth $712,146. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Standard Motor Products in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 7,560.0% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,149 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 1,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 89.1% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,159 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 546 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc (NYSE:SMP) manufactures and distributes replacement parts for the automotive aftermarket. The company supplies components used to maintain and repair passenger vehicles, light trucks, and other vehicles, serving professional repair shops, parts distributors, and do-it-yourself customers.

Its product portfolio includes engine-management components such as ignition, fuel, emissions, and sensor products, as well as temperature-control parts, including air-conditioning and cooling-system components.