Cooper-Standard Holdings (CPS) provides components for use in passenger vehicles and light trucks, including “sealing, fuel and brake delivery, fluid transfer and anti-vibration systems.”

The sealing systems business accounted for 53% of the company’s revenues in 2015. According to the company, Cooper-Standard Holdings is the leading global sealing systems company.

The fuel and brake delivery systems business contributed 20% of revenues. The company believes that it has a #2 position in the fuel and brake delivery systems that it produces.

The fluid transfer business is 14% of revenues. The company believes that it is the #3 competitor in this business.

The anti-vibration systems business contributed 8% of revenues in 2015. The company believes it is one of the larger North American producers of anti-vibration systems.

The company was founded by acquiring the automotive segment of Cooper Tire & Rubber Company in 2004. Since then, the company has grown organically and through acquisitions.

Cooper-Standard’s top customer is Ford (26% of 2015 sales). Its second most important customer is General Motors (GM) (16%).

Going forward, the company has a few different options for growth. It could continue to acquire companies. Intriguingly, the company’s U.S. operations have a double-digit profit margin. In contrast, the international segment (48% of sales) has been losing money. It does not appear as if the difference in profitability is a function of management shifting profits to lower tax jurisdictions, because very little of the company’s revenues are transfers between regions.

Cooper-Standard is earning at a run rate of about $2.00 per share per quarter, implying a P/E of about 11.5x. The company has been buying back stock this year. Before this year, the last time the company bought back a significant amount of stock was in 2013 (when the stock was at a much lower price than now).

The company’s business performance should have above average sensitivity to economic growth. If the U.S. economy were to enter a recession, we would expect Cooper-Standard’s results to suffer. Under those conditions, it is difficult to imagine that the stock will perform well. However, in the near term we don’t think a recession is likely.