Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) Stock Price Down 4% – Should You Sell?

Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO)’s stock price was down 4% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $100.76 and last traded at $102.12. Approximately 28,659 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 245,406 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.36.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price objective (up from $100.00) on shares of Exponent in a research note on Friday, July 26th.

Exponent Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $108.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.28 and a beta of 0.66.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $125.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $125.96 million. Exponent had a net margin of 19.35% and a return on equity of 28.39%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Exponent, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exponent Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Exponent’s dividend payout ratio is 54.63%.

Insider Activity

In other Exponent news, VP John Pye sold 3,956 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $415,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 28,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,984,310. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exponent

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Exponent in the second quarter worth $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Exponent by 67.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 379 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in Exponent by 166.5% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 517 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Exponent during the third quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its stake in Exponent by 70.5% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 873 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exponent Company Profile

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.