Northstar Group Inc. Purchases Shares of 60,500 Escalade, Incorporated $ESCA

Northstar Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Escalade, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ESCA) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 60,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,136,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ESCA. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Escalade in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in Escalade by 439.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,950 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Escalade by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 10,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Escalade in the 2nd quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Escalade by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 779 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESCA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Escalade from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Escalade from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Strong Buy”.

Escalade Trading Down 3.6%

Shares of ESCA opened at $20.07 on Friday. Escalade, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $11.41 and a 12 month high of $23.07. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $276.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.58.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.52. Escalade had a net margin of 9.46% and a return on equity of 13.11%. The business had revenue of $57.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.60 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Escalade, Incorporated will post 1.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Escalade Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.1525 per share. This represents a $0.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 6th. Escalade’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard Fenton Baalmann, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.27, for a total transaction of $111,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 97,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,177,872.38. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephen Wawrin sold 3,177 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.40, for a total value of $67,987.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 45,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $963,000. This represents a 6.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 41,227 shares of company stock worth $872,743 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 33.14% of the company’s stock.

Escalade News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Escalade this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Escalade recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1525 per share, or $0.61 annualized, representing an approximate 2.9% yield and a 36.5% payout ratio. Escalade dividend and insider trading report
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations: earnings per share were $0.68 versus the $0.16 consensus estimate, while revenue of $57.7 million was broadly in line with forecasts. Analysts currently expect approximately $1.56 in full-year EPS. Recent rating changes have also included upgrades to “Buy” and “Strong Buy.”
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles about Cadillac Escalade SUVs—including the Escalade IQ’s $54,995 customization package, the Escalade-V and Escalade Sport—refer to General Motors’ Cadillac vehicle brand, not Escalade, Incorporated. These stories should not have a direct effect on ESCA’s revenue or operations. Cadillac Escalade customization article
• Negative Sentiment: Director Edward E. Williams sold 33,050 shares over August 11–13 for approximately $693,000. The sales reduced his holdings by roughly 20% across the reported transactions, although he still owns 129,452 shares. Repeated insider selling can weigh on investor confidence, particularly after the stock’s recent advance. SEC filing for Escalade director stock sales

About Escalade

Escalade, Inc is a U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of recreational equipment and specialty products for both consumer and commercial markets. Headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, the company operates through two principal business segments: Sporting Goods and Commercial Products. The Sporting Goods segment encompasses a diverse range of products such as hockey and lacrosse goal assemblies, fitness accessories, archery and hunting gear, and table tennis equipment. The Commercial Products segment focuses on seating solutions for restaurants, hospitality venues and other public spaces under the Top Seat brand, as well as storage, display products and industrial carts.

Within Sporting Goods, Escalade markets its products under proprietary brands including Bear® Archery, Gene St.