Laurus Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 1,350 Shares of Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO)

Laurus Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,715 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,350 shares during the period. Exponent comprises about 1.2% of Laurus Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Laurus Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Exponent were worth $2,528,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Exponent in the second quarter worth $25,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Exponent in the first quarter worth $45,000. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Exponent in the third quarter worth $39,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Exponent in the first quarter worth $74,000. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. purchased a new position in Exponent during the second quarter valued at $68,000. Institutional investors own 92.37% of the company’s stock.

Exponent Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of Exponent stock opened at $81.86 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.05. Exponent, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.61 and a 52 week high of $101.65. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.98 and a beta of 0.68.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The business services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.03). Exponent had a net margin of 18.69% and a return on equity of 28.49%. The business had revenue of $113.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $119.11 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. Exponent’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Exponent, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Exponent Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $0.28 dividend. This is an increase from Exponent’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Exponent’s payout ratio is currently 57.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on EXPO. StockNews.com upgraded Exponent from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Exponent from $110.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Eric Guyer sold 3,367 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.49, for a total value of $264,275.83. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Exponent Company Profile

Exponent, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a science and engineering consulting company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Engineering and Other Scientific, and Environmental and Health. The Engineering and Other Scientific segment provides services in the areas of biomechanics, biomedical engineering and sciences, buildings and structures, civil engineering, construction consulting, data sciences, electrical engineering and computer science, human factors, materials and corrosion engineering, mechanical engineering, polymer science and materials chemistry, thermal sciences, and vehicle engineering.