Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) Trading 5.4% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)’s share price was up 5.4% on Wednesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $51.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Academy Sports and Outdoors traded as high as $55.46 and last traded at $55.40. Approximately 507,846 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 1,456,782 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.58.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $68.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.00, for a total value of $74,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $552,172. This trade represents a 11.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASO. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the third quarter worth about $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the third quarter worth about $40,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 98.4% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.47. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.62, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.30). The business had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.39 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 7.98% and a return on equity of 25.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.38 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.79%.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Company Profile

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a sporting goods and outdoor recreational retailer in the United States. The company outdoor division comprises camping products, such as coolers and drinkware, and camping accessories and equipment,; fishing products, including marine equipment and fishing rods, reels, and baits and equipment; and hunting products, which includes firearms, ammunition, archery and archery equipment, camouflage apparel, waders, shooting accessories, gun safes, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment.