Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) Plans Dividend Increase – $0.31 Per Share

Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of 0.31 per share by the business services provider on Friday, March 20th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a 3.3% increase from Exponent’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

Exponent has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 12 consecutive years. Exponent has a payout ratio of 56.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Exponent to earn $2.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.3%.

Exponent Price Performance

Shares of Exponent stock opened at $77.26 on Friday. Exponent has a 1-year low of $63.81 and a 1-year high of $97.57. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $72.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.93. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.82 and a beta of 0.79.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.02. Exponent had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 24.77%. The firm had revenue of $147.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.48 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. Exponent’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Exponent will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exponent

In other Exponent news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 4,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.39, for a total transaction of $344,911.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 83,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,872,567.31. This represents a 5.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 9,788 shares of company stock valued at $693,648 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Exponent

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EXPO. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Exponent by 97.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 396 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Exponent during the third quarter worth $33,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Exponent by 86.1% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 469 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Exponent during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Exponent during the third quarter worth $34,000. 92.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc (NASDAQ: EXPO) is an engineering and scientific consulting firm that offers multidisciplinary analysis and advisory services to clients across a range of industries. The company’s expertise spans mechanical, materials and corrosion engineering, civil and structural engineering, electrical engineering, industrial hygiene, toxicology and health sciences, and failure analysis. Exponent provides support for product design, performance evaluation, litigation consulting, and regulatory compliance, helping manufacturers, insurers, law firms and government agencies address complex technical challenges.

Founded in 1967 in Menlo Park, California, Exponent has grown from a small failure-analysis laboratory into a global consulting practice.