Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) Sets New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $115.75 and last traded at $115.18, with a volume of 62308 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $113.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price target (up previously from $100.00) on shares of Exponent in a research note on Friday, July 26th.

Exponent Trading Up 0.7 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $108.20 and a 200 day moving average of $98.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.81 billion, a PE ratio of 57.47 and a beta of 0.66.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.07. Exponent had a net margin of 19.35% and a return on equity of 28.39%. The company had revenue of $132.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Exponent, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exponent Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Exponent's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP John Pye sold 3,956 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $415,380.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 28,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,984,310. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exponent

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Congress Asset Management Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Exponent by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 52,157 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,592,000 after purchasing an additional 12,138 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Exponent by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,995,605 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $439,813,000 after buying an additional 19,795 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in Exponent by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 3,847 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 1,395 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exponent in the fourth quarter worth about $262,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Exponent in the 1st quarter worth approximately $132,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.37% of the company's stock.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a science and engineering consulting company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Engineering and Other Scientific, and Environmental and Health. The Engineering and Other Scientific segment provides services in the areas of biomechanics, biomedical engineering and sciences, buildings and structures, civil engineering, construction consulting, data sciences, electrical engineering and computer science, human factors, materials and corrosion engineering, mechanical engineering, polymer science and materials chemistry, thermal sciences, and vehicle engineering.

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