Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) Trading Down 6.3%

Shares of Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) traded down 6.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $29.14 and last traded at $29.63. 172,185 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 379,569 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UPBD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Upbound Group in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Upbound Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.17.

Upbound Group Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average is $32.97 and its 200-day moving average is $31.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 3.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33. The company has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a PE ratio of -245.31, a P/E/G ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 1.99.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.04. Upbound Group had a negative net margin of 0.13% and a positive return on equity of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $994.27 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Upbound Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 3rd were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.99%. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,233.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upbound Group

In related news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 991 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.68 per share, with a total value of $30,403.88. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 83,138 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,673.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Upbound Group news, EVP Anthony J. Blasquez sold 12,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.18, for a total transaction of $414,252.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,956,525.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.68 per share, with a total value of $30,403.88. Following the purchase, the director now owns 83,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,550,673.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Upbound Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in shares of Upbound Group during the third quarter worth $1,760,000. Swiss National Bank bought a new position in Upbound Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,078,000. Invesco Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $14,154,000. Vanguard Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Upbound Group in the third quarter valued at $170,877,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund bought a new stake in Upbound Group in the third quarter worth $705,000. Institutional investors own 90.30% of the company’s stock.

Upbound Group Company Profile

Upbound Group, Inc leases household durable goods to customers on a lease-to-own basis in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Rent-A-Center, Acima, Mexico, and Franchising. The company's brands, such as Rent-A-Center and Acima that facilitate consumer transactions across a range of store-based and virtual channels.