Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) CEO Eric Sills Sells 2,835 Shares of Company Stock

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) CEO Eric Sills sold 2,835 shares of Standard Motor Products stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.20, for a total value of $125,307.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 184,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,134,612.20. This trade represents a 1.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Standard Motor Products Stock Down 0.4%

SMP traded down $0.20 on Thursday, hitting $44.11. 22,210 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 141,353. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $34.27 and a twelve month high of $47.27. The company has a market cap of $985.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $38.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.82.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $512.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $514.99 million. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 3.77%. On average, equities analysts predict that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 4.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.28%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $242,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,222,500 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $45,355,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 19.7% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 22,368 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $830,000 after buying an additional 3,677 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,182 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $192,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BOKF NA acquired a new stake in Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter worth $356,000. 81.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SMP. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Standard Motor Products in a report on Monday, October 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Standard Motor Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Finally, Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of Standard Motor Products in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.00.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE: SMP) designs, manufactures and distributes replacement parts for the automotive aftermarket, along with components for original equipment manufacturers. Founded in 1919, the company has a long history in the vehicle-parts industry. Its products include ignition, fuel, emissions, engine-management and temperature-control parts, as well as switches, sensors and related electrical components. The company sells products under brands including Standard and Blue Streak.