Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) Share Price Crosses Below 200-Day Moving Average - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Escalade, Incorporated's shares have fallen below their 200-day moving average, trading at $12.61 compared to a moving average of $14.74.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, resulting in a 4.76% yield, with a payout ratio of 61.22%.
• Wall Street Zen upgraded Escalade's rating from "buy" to "strong-buy" following a positive earnings report exceeding expectations.

Shares of Escalade, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ESCA - Get Free Report) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $14.74 and traded as low as $12.61. Escalade shares last traded at $12.61, with a volume of 9,883 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Escalade from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th.

Escalade Stock Down 4.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 4.05. The company has a market cap of $173.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.87 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.74.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.06. Escalade had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 7.49%. The company had revenue of $55.48 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $54.44 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Escalade, Incorporated will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Escalade Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 7th. Escalade's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Escalade news, CFO Stephen Wawrin sold 2,177 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.16, for a total transaction of $33,003.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 43,000 shares in the company, valued at $651,880. The trade was a 4.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 28.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESCA. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Escalade in the 1st quarter valued at $4,731,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Escalade in the 1st quarter valued at $305,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Escalade by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 17,269 shares of the company's stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 2,510 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Escalade by 98.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 37,474 shares of the company's stock valued at $535,000 after buying an additional 18,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Escalade in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.22% of the company's stock.

About Escalade

Escalade, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, imports, and sells sporting goods in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company provides various sporting goods brands in basketball goals, archery, indoor and outdoor game recreation, and fitness products.

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