Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Turning Point Brands (NYSE:TPB) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Turning Point Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Turning Point Brands in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Turning Point Brands in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. iA Financial set a $110.00 price objective on Turning Point Brands in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Alliance Global Partners upped their price objective on shares of Turning Point Brands from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.67.

Turning Point Brands Stock Down 9.5%

Shares of NYSE:TPB opened at $97.38 on Monday. Turning Point Brands has a 1 year low of $51.48 and a 1 year high of $146.90. The company has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 31.11 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $120.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $105.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 5.56 and a quick ratio of 3.98.

Turning Point Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This is an increase from Turning Point Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 20th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Turning Point Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Turning Point Brands

In related news, Chairman David Edward Glazek sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.26, for a total value of $3,307,800.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 127,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,012,171.58. This trade represents a 19.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director H.C. Charles Diao sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.20, for a total value of $216,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,804 shares in the company, valued at $1,060,792.80. This represents a 16.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 6.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Turning Point Brands

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in Turning Point Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Turning Point Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Turning Point Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Turning Point Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Turning Point Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

About Turning Point Brands

Turning Point Brands, Inc (NYSE: TPB) is a U.S.-based consumer products company focused on the manufacture, marketing and distribution of smokeless tobacco, vaping and cigar products. Headquartered in Old Hickory, Tennessee, the company serves retail outlets across all 50 states through a direct-store-delivery network and select third-party distributors. Turning Point Brands operates two reporting segments—Smokeless Products and Cigar—and leverages its logistics capabilities to offer a broad portfolio of brands and SKUs.

In its Smokeless Products segment, Turning Point Brands produces moist smokeless tobacco under leading brand names such as Grizzly, Kodiak and Stoker’s.