Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Trims Stake in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP)

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC lowered its stake in Standard Motor Products, Inc. (NYSE:SMP) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 97,163 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 2,182 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned approximately 0.45% of Standard Motor Products worth $3,010,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Standard Motor Products during the 3rd quarter worth $3,876,000. Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,295,997 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $43,027,000 after purchasing an additional 73,476 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 359.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 48,522 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,609,000 after purchasing an additional 37,971 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Standard Motor Products by 274.6% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,119 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 27,210 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 27,210 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Ray Nicholas sold 4,730 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.11, for a total value of $161,340.30. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 46,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,582,192.35. This trade represents a 9.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised Standard Motor Products from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

Standard Motor Products Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of SMP opened at $31.11 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $675.75 million, a P/E ratio of 19.21 and a beta of 0.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.77. Standard Motor Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.09 and a twelve month high of $40.68.

Standard Motor Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Standard Motor Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.54%.

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.