Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) Sees Large Volume Increase Following Analyst Upgrade

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI) saw strong trading volume on Monday after Lake Street Capital raised their price target on the stock from $16.00 to $18.00. Lake Street Capital currently has a buy rating on the stock. 310,380 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 18% from the previous session’s volume of 377,838 shares.The stock last traded at $14.71 and had previously closed at $14.29.

Separately, Craig Hallum raised Smith & Wesson Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $14.00 to $18.00 in a report on Friday, March 8th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SWBI. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 1.4% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 101,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,307,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in Smith & Wesson Brands during the third quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 971,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,547,000 after purchasing an additional 57,648 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 14,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in Smith & Wesson Brands in the 3rd quarter worth $1,107,000. 59.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smith & Wesson Brands Trading Up 2.9 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $678.13 million, a PE ratio of 16.62 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 3.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.10. Smith & Wesson Brands had a return on equity of 11.18% and a net margin of 7.39%. The business had revenue of $159.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.80 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. Smith & Wesson Brands’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Smith & Wesson Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 11th. This is a positive change from Smith & Wesson Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Smith & Wesson Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.81%.

Smith & Wesson Brands Company Profile

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells firearms worldwide. The company offers handguns, including revolvers and pistols; long guns, such as modern sporting rifles, bolt action rifles; handcuffs; suppressors; and other firearm-related products under the Smith & Wesson, M&P, and Gemtech brands.