Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) Stock Price Up 9.7% – Time to Buy?

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) rose 9.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $40.63 and last traded at $41.84. Approximately 30,002 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 123,295 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.13.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SMP shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Standard Motor Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.00.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $37.26 and a 200 day moving average of $38.49. The stock has a market cap of $902.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.87 and a beta of 0.80.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The auto parts company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.09. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 2.51%.The business had revenue of $451.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $429.07 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 4.4 EPS for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,446 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 546 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Standard Motor Products in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 3.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 114,036 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,843,000 after purchasing an additional 3,352 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 320.0% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 64,037 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,596,000 after buying an additional 48,790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new position in Standard Motor Products during the 2nd quarter valued at about $431,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.