Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. $SSD

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. (NYSE:SSD) by 30.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 56,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 24,875 shares during the quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC’s holdings in Simpson Manufacturing were worth $9,461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alps Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Simpson Manufacturing by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 28,843 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,830,000 after purchasing an additional 8,706 shares during the period. EULAV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Simpson Manufacturing during the third quarter valued at approximately $5,526,000. Argent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Simpson Manufacturing in the third quarter worth approximately $15,976,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC grew its holdings in shares of Simpson Manufacturing by 340.1% in the third quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 14,221 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,381,000 after purchasing an additional 10,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP purchased a new position in shares of Simpson Manufacturing in the third quarter worth $12,211,000. 93.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on SSD. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Simpson Manufacturing from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Stephens set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Simpson Manufacturing in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Simpson Manufacturing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Simpson Manufacturing from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $222.00 target price on Simpson Manufacturing in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Simpson Manufacturing presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $207.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Simpson Manufacturing

In other news, Director Philip E. Donaldson sold 2,375 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.16, for a total value of $399,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,023,421.76. This represents a 28.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Simpson Manufacturing Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE:SSD opened at $181.73 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $187.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $178.70. The stock has a market cap of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $137.35 and a 12 month high of $211.98.

Simpson Manufacturing (NYSE:SSD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The construction company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.09. Simpson Manufacturing had a net margin of 14.79% and a return on equity of 17.63%. The company had revenue of $539.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $530.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Simpson Manufacturing’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Simpson Manufacturing Company, Inc. will post 8.29 EPS for the current year.

Simpson Manufacturing Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Simpson Manufacturing’s dividend payout ratio is 14.06%.

Simpson Manufacturing Company Profile

Simpson Manufacturing Co, Inc, through its Simpson Strong-Tie® brand, is a leading global supplier of structural building products. The company specializes in the design, testing, manufacture and supply of connectors, anchors, fasteners and lateral systems that enhance the safety and performance of wood, concrete and masonry structures. Its product portfolio also includes repair and strengthening systems, concrete reinforcement and high-performance adhesives used in residential, commercial and industrial construction projects.

Founded in 1956 by Barclay Simpson in Oakland, California, Simpson Manufacturing has grown from a single product business into a diversified manufacturer with worldwide operations.