ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO) Trading 3.1% Higher - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• ARKO shares rose 3.1% in mid-day trading, reaching as high as $8.14 after closing at $7.85 the previous day. Trading volume was below average, with about 605,138 shares changing hands.
• Recent analyst actions were mixed: Zacks upgraded ARKO to strong-buy, while Weiss Ratings downgraded it to sell and Wall Street Zen cut it to hold. The stock’s overall consensus rating remains Buy with an average target price of $8.00.
• ARKO recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting an EPS loss of $0.07 versus the expected $0.16 loss and revenue of $1.77 billion versus $1.65 billion expected. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share, equal to a 1.5% annualized yield.

ARKO Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 3.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $8.14 and last traded at $8.09. Approximately 605,138 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 38% from the average session volume of 969,968 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.85.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ARKO shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of ARKO from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered ARKO from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of ARKO from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $8.00.

ARKO Stock Up 3.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $907.62 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.58 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.62.

ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. ARKO had a net margin of 0.38% and a return on equity of 9.10%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.12) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that ARKO Corp. will post 0.29 EPS for the current year.

ARKO Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. ARKO's payout ratio is 63.16%.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Maury Bricks sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.50, for a total value of $85,000.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 162,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,384,148.50. This represents a 5.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 22.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ARKO

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of ARKO by 0.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,795,048 shares of the company's stock worth $17,343,000 after purchasing an additional 22,532 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of ARKO by 7.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,021,751 shares of the company's stock worth $16,800,000 after acquiring an additional 206,716 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of ARKO by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,903,496 shares of the company's stock worth $8,644,000 after acquiring an additional 7,735 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of ARKO during the first quarter worth $8,220,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of ARKO by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,448,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,577,000 after acquiring an additional 226,591 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.29% of the company's stock.

ARKO Company Profile

ARKO Corp NASDAQ: ARKO is a downstream energy and convenience retail company based in Matthews, North Carolina. The company's core operations encompass fuel supply, distribution and retailing through a network of terminals, independent dealer locations and company-operated convenience stores. ARKO's fuel offerings include branded and unbranded gasoline and diesel, as well as lubricants and other petroleum products marketed under various regional and private labels.

In its retail segment, ARKO operates a portfolio of convenience stores under the Kangaroo Express banner, serving on-site customers with fuel, grab-and-go food items, beverages and everyday household essentials.

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