Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) Sets New 52-Week Low on Analyst Downgrade

Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $100.00 to $95.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Exponent traded as low as $63.25 and last traded at $64.2330, with a volume of 124843 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.30.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Exponent in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Exponent in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Exponent presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.00.

Insider Activity at Exponent

In related news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 3,920 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.15, for a total transaction of $263,228.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 93,731 shares in the company, valued at $6,294,036.65. This represents a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP John Pye sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.97, for a total value of $303,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 25,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,914,747.88. The trade was a 13.70% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 9,583 shares of company stock worth $687,709 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exponent

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. HM Payson & Co. increased its position in shares of Exponent by 33.9% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP raised its holdings in Exponent by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 3,627 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Exponent by 1.1% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,984 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,041,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Exponent by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,709 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $466,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Exponent by 4.4% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,070 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. 92.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exponent Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00 and a beta of 0.77. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.62.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $147.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.48 million. Exponent had a net margin of 18.21% and a return on equity of 25.51%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Exponent, Inc. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Exponent Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is an increase from Exponent’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Exponent’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.62%.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc (NASDAQ: EXPO) is an engineering and scientific consulting firm that offers multidisciplinary analysis and advisory services to clients across a range of industries. The company’s expertise spans mechanical, materials and corrosion engineering, civil and structural engineering, electrical engineering, industrial hygiene, toxicology and health sciences, and failure analysis. Exponent provides support for product design, performance evaluation, litigation consulting, and regulatory compliance, helping manufacturers, insurers, law firms and government agencies address complex technical challenges.

Founded in 1967 in Menlo Park, California, Exponent has grown from a small failure-analysis laboratory into a global consulting practice.