Michael Wilson Sells 600 Shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) Stock

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) VP Michael Wilson sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $24,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,120. This trade represents a 32.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:RGR traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $41.24. The stock had a trading volume of 185,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 154,909. The firm has a market cap of $659.01 million, a PE ratio of 54.99 and a beta of 0.19. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.20. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $28.33 and a twelve month high of $48.21.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.10. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. had a net margin of 2.11% and a return on equity of 6.58%. The firm had revenue of $158.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $128.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is a positive change from Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s payout ratio is 112.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RGR. Group One Trading LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the second quarter worth $39,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $108,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the first quarter worth $150,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. in the first quarter valued at $218,000. 64.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells firearms for the commercial sporting market. Its product portfolio includes modern sporting rifles, bolt-action rifles, single-shot rifles, autoloading rifles, shotguns, pistols, and revolvers. The company markets its products primarily under the Ruger brand.

Founded in 1949 by William B. Ruger and Alexander McCormick Sturm, the company has developed a broad lineup serving hunters, sport shooters, firearm collectors, and personal-protection customers.