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

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $57.44.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ASO shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Thursday, March 20th.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ASO opened at $39.36 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $41.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 12 month low of $33.34 and a 12 month high of $64.62. The company has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.46, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.29.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 23.32% and a net margin of 7.49%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is a positive change from Academy Sports and Outdoors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 25th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.01%.

Institutional Trading of Academy Sports and Outdoors

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASO. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,402,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the fourth quarter valued at $47,436,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 331.4% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 959,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,210,000 after purchasing an additional 737,212 shares during the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,320,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 77.2% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,252,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,068,000 after buying an additional 545,778 shares during the period.

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.