Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday. The company traded as high as $90.51 and last traded at $88.19, with a volume of 10,222 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $87.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EXPO has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Exponent from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Exponent from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Exponent from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Exponent from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Exponent has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.00.

Exponent Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.13 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $71.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.84.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.04. Exponent had a net margin of 17.40% and a return on equity of 34.61%. The firm had revenue of $173.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $149.64 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Exponent, Inc. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exponent Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Exponent’s payout ratio is presently 53.45%.

Insider Transactions at Exponent

In related news, VP Richard Reiss sold 1,280 shares of Exponent stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.44, for a total value of $110,643.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,131.52. This trade represents a 55.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 1,707 shares of Exponent stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.28, for a total value of $113,139.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 129,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,557,278.24. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Exponent

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Exponent in the second quarter valued at $363,428,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Exponent during the second quarter worth about $29,270,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Exponent during the second quarter worth about $24,442,000. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new position in shares of Exponent during the second quarter worth about $21,406,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Exponent by 4,466.2% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 280,639 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,312,000 after acquiring an additional 274,493 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.37% of the company’s stock.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc is a science and engineering consulting company that helps clients investigate complex technical issues, manage risks, and develop solutions. Its consultants work across disciplines including engineering, materials science, biomechanics, human factors, environmental science, health, data sciences, and economics.

The company provides failure analysis, product safety and testing, accident reconstruction, environmental and health assessments, regulatory support, and expert testimony.