Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) Short Interest Up 64.1% in November

Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 663,700 shares, a growth of 64.1% from the October 31st total of 404,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 171,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days. Approximately 3.2% of the company's stock are short sold.

Standard Motor Products Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of SMP traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $32.88. 53,613 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 154,262. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Standard Motor Products has a 52 week low of $26.09 and a 52 week high of $41.71. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.05. The company has a market cap of $714.15 million, a PE ratio of 20.23 and a beta of 0.51.

Standard Motor Products (NYSE:SMP - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 business had revenue of $399.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $396.10 million. Standard Motor Products had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 10.42%. Standard Motor Products's revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Standard Motor Products will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Standard Motor Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Standard Motor Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Carmine Joseph Broccole sold 913 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total transaction of $31,918.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 81,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,840,185.36. The trade was a 1.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dale Burks sold 1,722 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.96, for a total transaction of $60,201.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,865 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,372,560.40. This trade represents a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,454 shares of company stock worth $225,701 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Standard Motor Products

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SMP. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC raised its stake in Standard Motor Products by 47.1% in the third quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 99,345 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 31,826 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in Standard Motor Products by 6.0% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,295,997 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $43,027,000 after acquiring an additional 73,476 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Standard Motor Products by 274.6% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,119 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 27,210 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products in the 3rd quarter valued at $73,000. Finally, Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Standard Motor Products by 83.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 48,025 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $1,332,000 after acquiring an additional 21,843 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.26% of the company's stock.

About Standard Motor Products

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.