59,511 Shares of Standard Motor Products, Inc. $SMP Acquired by Ellsworth Advisors LLC

Ellsworth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 59,511 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,208,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products in the second quarter valued at approximately $158,258,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products in the second quarter worth $10,882,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Standard Motor Products by 207.8% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 259,180 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $9,004,000 after purchasing an additional 174,986 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in Standard Motor Products during the second quarter worth about $5,869,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Standard Motor Products in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,492,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

Standard Motor Products Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SMP opened at $37.14 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $38.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.00 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $829.62 million, a PE ratio of 16.58 and a beta of 0.85. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a 1-year low of $34.27 and a 1-year high of $46.00.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The auto parts company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.01. Standard Motor Products had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 2.78%. The business had revenue of $526.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $511.68 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SMP shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Standard Motor Products from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $54.00 target price on shares of Standard Motor Products in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Standard Motor Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Insider Activity

In other Standard Motor Products news, EVP Dale Burks sold 9,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.71, for a total value of $350,364.21. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 56,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,204,728.05. This trade represents a 13.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 18,349 shares of company stock valued at $712,146. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

About Standard Motor Products

Standard Motor Products, Inc (NYSE:SMP) manufactures and distributes replacement parts for the automotive aftermarket. The company supplies components used to maintain and repair passenger vehicles, light trucks, and other vehicles, serving professional repair shops, parts distributors, and do-it-yourself customers.

Its product portfolio includes engine-management components such as ignition, fuel, emissions, and sensor products, as well as temperature-control parts, including air-conditioning and cooling-system components.