Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Buys 3,125 Shares of Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) by 33.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 12,559 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,125 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Exponent were worth $1,119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Exponent in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in Exponent during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Exponent during the third quarter worth about $64,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Exponent by 127.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 604 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in Exponent by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,512 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.37% of the company’s stock.

Exponent Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Exponent stock opened at $84.66 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.93 and a beta of 0.71. Exponent, Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.21 and a 1-year high of $115.75. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $89.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $98.93.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The business services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.06. Exponent had a net margin of 19.52% and a return on equity of 27.27%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.41 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Exponent, Inc. will post 1.98 EPS for the current year.

Exponent Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Exponent’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Exponent’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exponent

In other Exponent news, VP Richard Reiss sold 1,736 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.93, for a total value of $149,174.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $154,674. This trade represents a 49.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% 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.