Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Buys Shares of 167,397 Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 167,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,883,000. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.31% of Upbound Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Upbound Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Upbound Group by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 374.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 2,590 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Upbound Group by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. Finally, Vestcor Inc purchased a new position in Upbound Group during the fourth quarter valued at $174,000. Institutional investors own 90.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Loop Capital reduced their price target on Upbound Group from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 1,146 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.01 per share, with a total value of $33,245.46. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 86,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,505,883.80. This trade represents a 1.34 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Fahmi Karam acquired 11,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.82 per share, with a total value of $296,930.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 164,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,251,831.04. This trade represents a 7.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Upbound Group Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of UPBD stock opened at $24.20 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 3.66. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a PE ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 2.01. Upbound Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.35 and a 52-week high of $38.72.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. Upbound Group had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 35.47%. On average, analysts predict that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 4.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.59%.

Upbound Group 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.