Phocas Financial Corp. Trims Stock Position in Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPB)

Phocas Financial Corp. decreased its stake in Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPB) by 85.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,073 shares of the company’s stock after selling 74,119 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings in Spectrum Brands were worth $1,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SPB. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Spectrum Brands during the fourth quarter worth $562,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its position in shares of Spectrum Brands by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 23,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,965,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Spectrum Brands by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 9,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $786,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spectrum Brands during the 4th quarter valued at about $237,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Spectrum Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $865,000.

Spectrum Brands Price Performance

Spectrum Brands stock opened at $79.67 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $74.72 and a 52-week high of $96.74.

Spectrum Brands (NYSE:SPB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.11. Spectrum Brands had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 6.44%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spectrum Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. Spectrum Brands’s payout ratio is 46.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on SPB shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Spectrum Brands from $114.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Spectrum Brands from $114.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Spectrum Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $94.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Spectrum Brands from $92.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.43.

Spectrum Brands Profile

Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc operates as a branded consumer products and home essentials company in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific regions. It operates through three segments: Home and Personal Care; Global Pet Care; and Home and Garden. The Home and Personal Care segment provides home appliances under the Black & Decker, Russell Hobbs, George Foreman, PowerXL, Emeril Legasse, Copper Chef, Toastmaster, Juiceman, Farberware, and Breadman brands; and personal care products under the Remington brand.