Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on TPB. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $85.00 price target on shares of Turning Point Brands in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Alliance Global Partners initiated coverage on shares of Turning Point Brands in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $80.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Turning Point Brands from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Turning Point Brands presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.67.

Turning Point Brands Stock Up 2.5%

TPB opened at $71.81 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $60.21 and a 200-day moving average of $60.39. Turning Point Brands has a fifty-two week low of $30.61 and a fifty-two week high of $81.05. The company has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 28.50 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 4.21 and a quick ratio of 1.78.

Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $106.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.75 million. Turning Point Brands had a return on equity of 33.14% and a net margin of 11.63%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Turning Point Brands will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Turning Point Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Turning Point Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Brian Wigginton sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.75, for a total value of $265,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 10,171 shares in the company, valued at $770,453.25. This represents a 25.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory H.A. Baxter sold 1,500 shares of Turning Point Brands stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.64, for a total value of $110,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 40,419 shares in the company, valued at $2,976,455.16. This represents a 3.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Turning Point Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Turning Point Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Turning Point Brands during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Turning Point Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $96,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Turning Point Brands by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,364 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Turning Point Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Turning Point Brands Company Profile

Turning Point Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes branded consumer products. The company operates through three segments: Zig-Zag Products, Stoker’s Products, and Creative Distribution Solutions. Zig-Zag Products segment markets and distributes rolling papers, tubes, finished cigars, make-your-own cigar wraps, and related products, as well as lighters and other accessories under the Zig-Zag brand.