Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also commented on SWBI. Wall Street Zen raised Smith & Wesson Brands from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 8th. Lake Street Capital lifted their price target on Smith & Wesson Brands from $14.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Smith & Wesson Brands from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.50.

Smith & Wesson Brands Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of Smith & Wesson Brands stock opened at $16.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Smith & Wesson Brands has a 52-week low of $7.73 and a 52-week high of $17.56. The company has a market capitalization of $721.05 million, a P/E ratio of 40.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average of $15.07 and a 200 day moving average of $13.09.

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 17th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.13. Smith & Wesson Brands had a net margin of 3.53% and a return on equity of 5.01%. The company had revenue of $178.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $155.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.20 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Smith & Wesson Brands will post 0.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Smith & Wesson Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. Smith & Wesson Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smith & Wesson Brands

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at about $7,558,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 166.1% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 753,964 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,411,000 after buying an additional 470,602 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Smith & Wesson Brands by 25.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,311,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,945,000 after buying an additional 265,370 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 41.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 712,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,642,000 after acquiring an additional 208,739 shares during the period. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP grew its position in shares of Smith & Wesson Brands by 159.3% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 318,026 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,139,000 after acquiring an additional 195,390 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.33% of the company’s stock.

Smith & Wesson Brands Company Profile

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc is a leading American manufacturer of firearms and related products, designing, producing and marketing a broad array of handguns, long guns and shooting accessories. The company’s portfolio includes revolvers, semi-automatic pistols and rifles under well-known brands such as M&P® (Military & Police) and Performance Center®, which are used by military, law enforcement, commercial and private customers. In addition to complete firearms, Smith & Wesson offers suppressors, optics mounts, holsters and other shooting accessories to support a full spectrum of professional and recreational shooting activities.

Founded in 1852 by Horace Smith and Daniel B.