JPMorgan Chase & Co. Begins Coverage on Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO)

Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $100.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target points to a potential upside of 34.66% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Exponent in a research report on Thursday. William Blair raised shares of Exponent from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price objective (up from $76.00) on shares of Exponent in a report on Monday, December 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Exponent currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.50.

Exponent Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ EXPO opened at $74.26 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.98. The firm has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a PE ratio of 36.22 and a beta of 0.81. Exponent has a twelve month low of $63.81 and a twelve month high of $97.57.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $147.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $131.78 million. Exponent had a return on equity of 24.77% and a net margin of 18.35%.The business’s revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Exponent will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Exponent announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 4,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.39, for a total transaction of $344,911.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 83,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,872,567.31. The trade was a 5.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,788 shares of company stock worth $693,648. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Exponent

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Exponent in the first quarter worth $270,000. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Exponent by 1,481.0% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 127,222 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,313,000 after acquiring an additional 119,175 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in Exponent in the 2nd quarter worth $167,000. Fenimore Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Exponent by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 191,483 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $14,306,000 after acquiring an additional 588 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in Exponent by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 18,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,367,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exponent Company Profile

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.