Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) Downgraded by UBS Group to “Neutral”

UBS Group lowered shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $58.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $81.00.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on ASO. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. B. Riley restated a buy rating and set a $72.00 target price (up from $65.00) on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an outperform rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Academy Sports and Outdoors presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $66.27.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Up 0.8 %

ASO stock opened at $51.79 on Wednesday. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a fifty-two week low of $42.83 and a fifty-two week high of $75.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $56.60 and a 200-day moving average of $62.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.92, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 1.62.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.11). Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 8.17% and a return on equity of 27.18%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 20th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.73%.

Insider Activity at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $72,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,200. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Academy Sports and Outdoors

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 52.3% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 46,454 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,066,000 after purchasing an additional 15,955 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1,014.0% during the fourth quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 213,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,094,000 after buying an additional 194,373 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the fourth quarter worth $2,501,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 370,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,467,000 after acquiring an additional 70,438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the fourth quarter valued at $1,842,000.

About Academy Sports and Outdoors

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.