Franklin Resources Inc. Makes New Investment in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 123,555 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $3,876,000. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.57% of Standard Motor Products at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,535,303 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $42,574,000 after acquiring an additional 8,070 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Standard Motor Products by 6.0% in 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. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 783,593 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $26,015,000 after purchasing an additional 19,652 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Standard Motor Products by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 485,299 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $16,115,000 after buying an additional 27,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 338,931 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $9,399,000 after buying an additional 55,327 shares during the last quarter. 81.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Standard Motor Products Price Performance

NYSE:SMP traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $31.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 30,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 152,342. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $675.55 million, a P/E ratio of 19.20 and a beta of 0.52. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.09 and a twelve month high of $41.71. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.32.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $399.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.10 million. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The firm's revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Standard Motor Products, Inc. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.73%. Standard Motor Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.60%.

Insider Activity

In other Standard Motor Products news, CFO Nathan R. Iles sold 1,485 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.97, for a total value of $51,930.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,015 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,014,654.55. This represents a 4.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Ray Nicholas sold 4,730 shares of Standard Motor Products stock in a transaction on 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 owns 46,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,582,192.35. This trade represents a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,184 shares of company stock worth $387,041. Insiders own 5.00% of the company's stock.

Standard Motor Products 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.