Kestrel Investment Management Corp Sells 12,300 Shares of Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP)

Kestrel Investment Management Corp decreased its position in shares of Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,900 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 12,300 shares during the period. Standard Motor Products makes up about 1.8% of Kestrel Investment Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Kestrel Investment Management Corp owned 0.31% of Standard Motor Products worth $2,663,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SMP. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 17.4% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,983 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 12.4% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 50,840 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,193,000 after acquiring an additional 5,610 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 2.0% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 261,309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $11,273,000 after acquiring an additional 5,202 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 3.5% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 17,420 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $751,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 56.5% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 10,831 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $467,000 after acquiring an additional 3,910 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. TheStreet lowered shares of Standard Motor Products from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Standard Motor Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 29th.

Standard Motor Products Stock Performance

Shares of Standard Motor Products stock traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $32.50. The company had a trading volume of 139,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 127,935. The stock has a market cap of $733.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.10 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.89. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.09 and a 12-month high of $41.71.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The auto parts company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.62 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $290.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.84 million. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 10.09%. As a group, analysts predict that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, February 15th were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. Standard Motor Products’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Standard Motor Products Company Profile

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.