Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMPGet Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Standard Motor Products Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SMP opened at $31.21 on Friday. Standard Motor Products has a 52-week low of $26.09 and a 52-week high of $41.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 2.25. The company has a market capitalization of $677.86 million, a P/E ratio of 19.26 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.87.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMPGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $399.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.10 million. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Standard Motor Products will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Standard Motor Products news, VP Ray Nicholas sold 4,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.11, for a total value of $161,340.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 46,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,582,192.35. This represents a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Nathan R. Iles sold 1,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.97, for a total transaction of $51,930.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,015 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,014,654.55. This represents a 4.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,184 shares of company stock worth $387,041 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Standard Motor Products

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 153.8% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 906 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Standard Motor Products by 147.2% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,031 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Standard Motor Products by 64.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,745 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 685 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Standard Motor Products during the third quarter worth about $73,000. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products during the third quarter worth about $83,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

About Standard Motor Products

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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