Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) Trading Up 4.3% – Still a Buy?

Turning Point Brands, Inc. (NYSE:TPB)’s share price was up 4.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $57.58 and last traded at $57.39. Approximately 73,975 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 118,495 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.00.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on TPB shares. Roth Capital upgraded shares of Turning Point Brands to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Turning Point Brands from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Roth Mkm assumed coverage on shares of Turning Point Brands in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Benchmark upped their target price on Turning Point Brands from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer began coverage on Turning Point Brands in a report on Thursday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.00.

Turning Point Brands Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 4.21, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.04 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s 50-day moving average is $44.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.16.

Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $105.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $100.71 million. Turning Point Brands had a return on equity of 33.14% and a net margin of 11.63%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Turning Point Brands, Inc. will post 2.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Turning Point Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. Turning Point Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gregory H.A. Baxter sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.42, for a total value of $78,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 46,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,834,764.48. This represents a 4.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Turning Point Brands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TPB. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its stake in shares of Turning Point Brands by 45.2% in the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 255,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,481,000 after purchasing an additional 79,489 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners bought a new position in shares of Turning Point Brands in the first quarter valued at $964,000. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Turning Point Brands during the 1st quarter valued at $1,661,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Turning Point Brands by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,497,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,865,000 after acquiring an additional 92,147 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Turning Point Brands by 245.9% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 154,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,965,000 after acquiring an additional 109,983 shares during the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Turning Point Brands

Turning Point Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes branded consumer products. The company operates through three segments: Zig-Zag Products, Stoker’s Products, and Creative Distribution Solutions. Zig-Zag Products segment markets and distributes rolling papers, tubes, finished cigars, make-your-own cigar wraps, and related products, as well as lighters and other accessories under the Zig-Zag brand.