Susquehanna International Group LLP Grows Stock Holdings in Exponent, Inc. $EXPO

Susquehanna International Group LLP raised its position in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) by 42.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 75,694 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,733 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP’s holdings in Exponent were worth $4,448,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of EXPO. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in Exponent during the 1st quarter worth $270,000. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Exponent by 1,481.0% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 127,222 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,313,000 after buying an additional 119,175 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Exponent by 3.3% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 554,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,444,000 after buying an additional 17,930 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Exponent in the second quarter worth about $18,377,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Exponent by 7.5% in the second quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 6,623 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $495,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exponent Stock Performance

Shares of Exponent stock opened at $71.53 on Monday. Exponent, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $51.91 and a fifty-two week high of $81.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $64.33 and a 200 day moving average of $64.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.08 and a beta of 0.68.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Exponent had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 31.48%. The company had revenue of $171.61 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.99 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Exponent, Inc. will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Exponent Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Exponent’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exponent

In related news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 1,707 shares of Exponent stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.28, for a total transaction of $113,139.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,108 shares in the company, valued at $8,557,278.24. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Exponent from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group set a $72.00 price objective on Exponent and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Exponent in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.00.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc (NASDAQ: EXPO) is an engineering and scientific consulting firm that offers multidisciplinary analysis and advisory services to clients across a range of industries. The company’s expertise spans mechanical, materials and corrosion engineering, civil and structural engineering, electrical engineering, industrial hygiene, toxicology and health sciences, and failure analysis. Exponent provides support for product design, performance evaluation, litigation consulting, and regulatory compliance, helping manufacturers, insurers, law firms and government agencies address complex technical challenges.

Founded in 1967 in Menlo Park, California, Exponent has grown from a small failure-analysis laboratory into a global consulting practice.