Short Interest in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) Decreases By 30.7%

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 460,200 shares, a drop of 30.7% from the November 15th total of 663,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 169,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Standard Motor Products Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Standard Motor Products stock traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $33.53. The stock had a trading volume of 142,488 shares, compared to its average volume of 152,231. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $728.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.69 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Standard Motor Products has a 1 year low of $26.09 and a 1 year high of $41.71.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.19. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 2.56%. The business had revenue of $399.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Standard Motor Products will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Standard Motor Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.61%.

Insider Activity at Standard Motor Products

In related news, VP Ray Nicholas sold 4,730 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.11, for a total transaction of $161,340.30. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Eric Sills sold 1,721 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.97, for a total value of $60,183.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 175,651 shares in the company, valued at $6,142,515.47. This trade represents a 0.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,184 shares of company stock valued at $387,041 over the last quarter. Insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Standard Motor Products

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Standard Motor Products by 274.6% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,119 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 27,210 shares in the last quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC grew its stake in Standard Motor Products by 47.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 99,345 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 31,826 shares in the last quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $649,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in Standard Motor Products by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,295,997 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $43,027,000 after purchasing an additional 73,476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

About Standard Motor Products

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.