Stanley Black & Decker (NYSE:SWK) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $72.75, but opened at $76.29. Stanley Black & Decker shares last traded at $76.9080, with a volume of 345,591 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SWK shares. Morgan Stanley set a $88.00 target price on shares of Stanley Black & Decker in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Stanley Black & Decker from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Stanley Black & Decker from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Stanley Black & Decker in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Stanley Black & Decker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, October 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.56.

Stanley Black & Decker Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $11.75 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $69.52 and its 200-day moving average is $71.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Stanley Black & Decker (NYSE:SWK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter. Stanley Black & Decker had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 2.89%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Stanley Black & Decker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Stanley Black & Decker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 114.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in Stanley Black & Decker by 46.4% during the second quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 903,163 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $61,189,000 after purchasing an additional 286,331 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Stanley Black & Decker by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,723,331 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $184,506,000 after buying an additional 761,191 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Stanley Black & Decker by 773.1% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 53,278 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,610,000 after acquiring an additional 47,176 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Stanley Black & Decker during the second quarter worth about $10,128,000. Finally, Rempart Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Stanley Black & Decker by 22.5% in the second quarter. Rempart Asset Management Inc. now owns 156,704 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,617,000 after purchasing an additional 28,826 shares in the last quarter. 87.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Stanley Black & Decker

Stanley Black & Decker, Inc (NYSE:SWK) is a leading global manufacturer of industrial tools, engineered fastening systems, and security products. The company’s portfolio includes power tools, hand tools, accessories, and storage solutions marketed under well-known brands such as DEWALT, Stanley, Craftsman and Black & Decker. In addition to its core tools and hardware offerings, the company provides customized assembly and installation systems for the automotive, electronics and aerospace industries.

Operations are organized across three principal business segments.