HighTower Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR)

HighTower Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,727 shares of the company’s stock after selling 435 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.06% of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. worth $344,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 32.5% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. by 127.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,442 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $260,000. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $280,000. Finally, Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $319,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE RGR opened at $39.48 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.43. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.11 and a 12 month high of $48.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $661.83 million, a PE ratio of 22.31 and a beta of 0.15.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE:RGR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company had revenue of $145.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $137.77 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.24%.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. Profile

Sturm, Ruger & Co, Inc engages in the business of designing, manufacturing, and selling firearms to domestic customers. It operates through the Firearms and Castings segments. The Firearms segment focuses on manufacturing and selling rifles, pistols, and revolvers principally to a number of federally licensed, independent wholesale distributors.