Short Interest in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) Declines By 26.6%

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 524,300 shares, a decline of 26.6% from the February 13th total of 714,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 125,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

NYSE:SMP traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $26.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 168,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,900. The business’s fifty day moving average is $30.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.51. The stock has a market cap of $580.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Standard Motor Products has a 1 year low of $25.68 and a 1 year high of $35.92.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The auto parts company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $343.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.50 million. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 2.56%. Analysts anticipate that Standard Motor Products will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Standard Motor Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd.

Insider Transactions at Standard Motor Products

In related news, EVP Dale Burks sold 11,005 shares of Standard Motor Products stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.20, for a total transaction of $299,336.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 56,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,546,592. The trade was a 16.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Standard Motor Products by 7.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 104,913 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,483,000 after buying an additional 6,819 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 105,343 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,497,000 after acquiring an additional 5,360 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 16,198 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Standard Motor Products in the 3rd quarter worth about $382,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Standard Motor Products by 274.6% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,119 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 27,210 shares in the last quarter. 81.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Standard Motor Products Company 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.