Monness Crespi & Hardt Begins Coverage on Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO)

Key Points

• Monness Crespi & Hardt has initiated coverage on Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) with a "buy" rating and a price target of $65.00, suggesting a potential upside of 31.93% from the previous stock close.
• Academy Sports and Outdoors reported a Q2 earnings miss with an EPS of $0.76, below the consensus estimate of $0.89, along with a revenue of $1.35 billion which slightly fell short of expectations.
• Institutional investors are actively adjusting their positions in Academy Sports and Outdoors, with multiple firms increasing their stakes during the recent quarter.

Investment analysts at Monness Crespi & Hardt initiated coverage on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt's price objective suggests a potential upside of 30.97% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Academy Sports and Outdoors has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.53.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Trading Down 1.1%

ASO traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $49.63. 815,786 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,657,180. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $48.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.47. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 52-week low of $33.34 and a 52-week high of $64.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a PE ratio of 9.12, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.30.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 6.55%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Christopher Lee Turner sold 4,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total value of $195,712.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,084 shares in the company, valued at $315,096.32. The trade was a 38.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 3.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASO. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 214.6% during the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 689 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP grew its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 101.5% in the first quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP now owns 816 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1,041.7% in the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the first quarter valued at about $64,000.

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.