Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.50.

ASO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $77.00 price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price 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. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

Shares of ASO opened at $54.21 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a PE ratio of 8.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.34. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a one year low of $43.07 and a one year high of $75.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $56.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.33.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 10th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 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 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 19th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 19th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.73%.

Insider Activity at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $552,172. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASO. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the second quarter worth approximately $174,054,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 19.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,969,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,147,000 after purchasing an additional 481,640 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 169.0% during the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 510,727 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,494,000 after purchasing an additional 320,835 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 74.9% during the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 687,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,410,000 after purchasing an additional 294,215 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,224,000.

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.