Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) is seeing a big drop in short interest

Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO – Get Free Report ) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,550,000 shares, a decrease of 7.7% from the August 15th total of 1,680,000 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 200,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.7 days.

Changes in Analyst Ratings

Separately, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price (up previously from $100.00) on shares of Exponent in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Check out our latest EXPO review

Exponent stock performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EXPO traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $108.49. 168,899 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 253,992. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $104.58 and its two hundred day simple moving average is $94.14. Exponent has a 52 week low of $64.61 and a 52 week high of $110.77. The company has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.05 and a beta of 0.66.

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO – Get Free Report ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $132.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $130.83 million. Exponent had a net margin of 19.35% and a return on equity of 28.39%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted earnings of $0.50 per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Exponent will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exponent Dividends Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a dividend of $1.12 on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6. The payout ratio of the exponent is 56.57%.

Indoor activity

In related news, VP John Pye sold 3,956 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $415,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 28,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,984,310. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed via this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s shares.

Institutional investors weigh in on the exponent

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EXPO. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Exponent in the second quarter worth approximately $293,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Exponent during the second quarter valued at about $146,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exponent in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,704,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Exponent in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Creative Planning boosted its stake in Exponent by 56.5% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 17,070 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,624,000 after buying an additional 6,164 shares during the period. 92.37% of shares are owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Exhibitor company profile

(Get a free report)

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 fields and Environment and Health. The Engineering and Other Science segment provides services in the fields of biomechanics, engineering and biomedical sciences, buildings and structures, civil engineering, construction consulting, data science, electrical and computer engineering, human factors, materials and corrosion engineering, mechanical engineering, polymer science and materials chemistry, thermal sciences, and vehicle engineering.

Read more

Get news and reviews for Exponent Daily – Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts’ ratings for Exponent and related companies with MarketBeat.com’s FREE daily email newsletter.