Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Price Performance

RGR opened at $40.04 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $671.15 million, a PE ratio of 22.62 and a beta of 0.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $35.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.76. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.11 and a 1 year high of $48.20.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.62. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The firm had revenue of $145.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $137.77 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This is a positive change from Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.24%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Creative Planning purchased a new position in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $320,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 4,075.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 19,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 18,585 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP raised its stake in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 7,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 4,027.7% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 21,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $912,000 after buying an additional 21,347 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 64.4% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,279 shares of the company’s stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 4,810 shares during the period. 64.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.

Sturm, Ruger & Co, Inc engages in the business of designing, manufacturing, and selling firearms to domestic customers. It operates under the Firearms and Castings segments. The Firearms segment focuses on manufacturing and selling rifles, pistols, and revolvers principally to a number of federally licensed, independent wholesale distributors.