Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) Sees Strong Trading Volume After Dividend Announcement

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI) saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. Approximately 1,062,785 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 148% from the previous session’s volume of 428,618 shares.The stock last traded at $11.22 and had previously closed at $10.86.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 19th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 19th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.59%. Smith & Wesson Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SWBI. Lake Street Capital downgraded shares of Smith & Wesson Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $13.00 in a research note on Friday. Craig Hallum lowered Smith & Wesson Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $18.00 to $13.00 in a research note on Friday.

Smith & Wesson Brands Trading Up 4.2 %

The company has a current ratio of 3.97, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $507.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.29.

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.06). Smith & Wesson Brands had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 7.00%. The company had revenue of $129.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $133.53 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Smith & Wesson Brands

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Smith & Wesson Brands by 2.7% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,798,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,123,000 after acquiring an additional 72,500 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,067,955 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,865,000 after purchasing an additional 7,260 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 28.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,046,287 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,004,000 after purchasing an additional 230,532 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,354,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,129,000. 59.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smith & Wesson Brands Company Profile

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells firearms worldwide. The company offers handguns, including revolvers and pistols; long guns, such as modern sporting rifles, bolt action rifles; handcuffs; suppressors; and other firearm-related products under the Smith & Wesson, M&P, and Gemtech brands.