Exponent, Inc. $EXPO Position Reduced by Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC

Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC decreased its holdings in Exponent, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPO) by 37.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,636 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,301 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC’s holdings in Exponent were worth $1,086,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Exponent during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. HM Payson & Co. lifted its stake in Exponent by 33.9% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Exponent by 21.7% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 829 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Exponent in the 3rd quarter worth $96,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Exponent by 123.6% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 764 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EXPO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Exponent in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 target price (up from $76.00) on shares of Exponent in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of Exponent from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Exponent has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $81.00.

Exponent Stock Up 0.3%

EXPO stock opened at $74.58 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $72.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.03. Exponent, Inc. has a twelve month low of $63.81 and a twelve month high of $97.57. The company has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.38 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Exponent Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Exponent’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.54%.

Exponent announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Exponent

In related news, CEO Catherine Corrigan sold 4,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 $5,872,567.31. The trade was a 5.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Exponent 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.