Probity Advisors Inc. Increases Stock Position in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP)

Probity Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,671 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after buying an additional 1,603 shares during the period. Probity Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Standard Motor Products were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,655,886 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $51,299,000 after buying an additional 69,000 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 929,813 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $28,806,000 after buying an additional 19,180 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 717,457 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $22,227,000 after purchasing an additional 32,197 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 21.1% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 497,258 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $15,405,000 after purchasing an additional 86,640 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 494,489 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $15,323,000 after purchasing an additional 9,190 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

Standard Motor Products Trading Up 3.3%

NYSE:SMP opened at $29.77 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $25.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.24. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.38 and a 12 month high of $35.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $654.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.38 and a beta of 0.62.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The auto parts company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $413.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $394.38 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. This is a boost from Standard Motor Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Insider Transactions at Standard Motor Products

In related news, EVP Dale Burks sold 11,005 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,860 shares in the company, valued at $1,546,592. This trade represents a 16.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Standard Motor Products Profile

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.