Gallacher Capital Management LLC Makes New $647,000 Investment in Exponent, Inc. $EXPO

Gallacher Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 9,910 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $647,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Exponent by 37.1% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 717 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Exponent by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 19,329 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,261,000 after buying an additional 1,839 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in shares of Exponent by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 12,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $783,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Exponent by 18.5% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 177,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $11,569,000 after acquiring an additional 27,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Exponent by 4,466.2% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 280,639 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $18,312,000 after acquiring an additional 274,493 shares during the last quarter. 92.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exponent Stock Up 3.8%

Shares of NASDAQ EXPO opened at $64.41 on Friday. Exponent, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $51.91 and a fifty-two week high of $81.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $58.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.88. The firm has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 29.96 and a beta of 0.72.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $166.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $149.53 million. Exponent had a return on equity of 27.94% and a net margin of 18.07%.Exponent’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Exponent, Inc. will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Exponent Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Exponent’s payout ratio is 57.67%.

Insider Activity at Exponent

In related news, VP Joseph Rakow sold 2,945 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.66, for a total value of $160,973.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Bradley A. James sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.47, for a total transaction of $114,940.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,105 shares in the company, valued at $63,504.35. This trade represents a 64.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 15,324 shares of company stock valued at $855,019. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EXPO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Exponent in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Exponent in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Exponent from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Exponent currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.50.

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.