Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL) Stock Bumped Up to "Strong-Buy" by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Accel Entertainment to “strong-buy” from “buy.” Across analysts, the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $14.25.
• Accel reported quarterly earnings of $0.25 per share, beating the $0.18 estimate, and revenue of $363.56 million, above the $358.62 million consensus.
• CEO Mark Phelan sold 25,000 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan; insiders sold 65,036 shares worth about $765,000 over the past 90 days.

Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Accel Entertainment from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. National Bank Financial set a $15.00 price target on shares of Accel Entertainment in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Accel Entertainment in a research note on Friday, August 21st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. Citizens Jmp boosted their price target on Accel Entertainment from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Accel Entertainment in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accel Entertainment currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $14.25.

Accel Entertainment Stock Performance

NYSE:ACEL opened at $13.72 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $11.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.74. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.06 and a beta of 1.09. Accel Entertainment has a twelve month low of $9.55 and a twelve month high of $14.00.

Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $363.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $358.62 million. Accel Entertainment had a return on equity of 22.30% and a net margin of 4.08%. As a group, research analysts predict that Accel Entertainment will post 0.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark T. Phelan sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 216,464 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,597,568. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Derek Harmer sold 26,324 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.63, for a total transaction of $306,148.12. Following the transaction, the insider owned 170,929 shares in the company, valued at $1,987,904.27. This trade represents a 13.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 65,036 shares of company stock valued at $765,180. 14.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Accel Entertainment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACEL. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Accel Entertainment by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,676 shares of the company's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 2,542 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in Accel Entertainment in the third quarter worth about $41,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Accel Entertainment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $128,000. R Squared Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Accel Entertainment by 52.2% in the third quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 39,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $426,000 after buying an additional 13,686 shares during the period. Finally, Uhlmann Price Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Accel Entertainment during the 3rd quarter worth about $203,000. 55.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accel Entertainment Company Profile

Accel Entertainment, Inc is a distributed gaming operator that provides regulated gaming services and equipment to non-casino businesses. The company places and operates gaming terminals in locations such as bars, restaurants, taverns, convenience stores, truck stops, and fraternal or veterans organizations, allowing these establishments to offer legal gaming without operating a traditional casino.

Accel manages the installation, maintenance, monitoring, and regulatory compliance of its gaming equipment.

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