Wall Street Zen Upgrades Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Upbound Group to “Buy” from “Hold,” but the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with an average price target of $28.00.
• Upbound Group’s latest quarterly results modestly exceeded expectations, reporting $1.07 in EPS versus a $1.05 estimate and $1.16 billion in revenue; management guided to fiscal 2026 EPS of $4.00–$4.35.
• The stock opened at $15.91, near its 52-week low of $15.13, while institutional investors own a substantial 90.3% of outstanding shares.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on UPBD. Zacks Research upgraded Upbound Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. BTIG Research cut Upbound Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $28.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Upbound Group from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Upbound Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.00.

Upbound Group Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of Upbound Group stock opened at $15.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 3.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $927.55 million, a PE ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 1.78. Upbound Group has a 52-week low of $15.13 and a 52-week high of $23.98. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.85.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. Upbound Group had a net margin of 1.90% and a return on equity of 34.53%. The business's revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. Upbound Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000-4.350 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.850-0.950 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Upbound Group will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Upbound Group

In related news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 2,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.09 per share, for a total transaction of $46,106.55. Following the purchase, the director owned 96,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,942,321.29. This represents a 2.43% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Anthony J. Blasquez sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.85, for a total value of $188,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,717 shares in the company, valued at $824,065.45. The trade was a 18.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upbound Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CX Institutional bought a new stake in Upbound Group during the third quarter valued at about $4,619,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $524,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its holdings in Upbound Group by 62.0% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 58,810 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,248,000 after acquiring an additional 22,500 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group in the second quarter worth about $76,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in Upbound Group by 299.3% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,214 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. 90.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Upbound Group

Upbound Group, Inc is a provider of branded leasing and alternative-purchase solutions for consumers. The company operates through a network of stores and digital channels, offering access to products such as furniture, appliances, consumer electronics, computers, smartphones and other household merchandise through lease-to-own and related payment arrangements.

Its principal brands include Rent-A-Center, which provides lease-to-own products through company-operated and franchised locations, and Acima, a technology-enabled point-of-sale leasing platform that connects consumers with participating retail merchants.

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