Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Makes New $215,000 Investment in Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Aaron's Holdings Company, purchasing 8,096 shares valued at approximately $215,000 in the first quarter.
• Aaron's Holdings reported earnings of $1.02 EPS for the latest quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate by $0.23, with revenue reaching $604.66 million.
• Analysts have set mixed ratings for Aaron's stock, with price targets ranging from $24.00 to $45.00, leading to an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $41.00.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,096 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Aaron's by 765.6% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 957 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Aaron's by 248.6% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,370 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in Aaron's during the fourth quarter worth $235,000. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Aaron's by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 5,694 shares of the company's stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aaron's in the fourth quarter valued at $288,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.92% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Aaron's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Aaron's from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. BTIG Research lowered Aaron's from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $24.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their target price on Aaron's from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.00.

Aaron's Trading Up 0.7%

PRG traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $31.40. The stock had a trading volume of 411,806 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,091. Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.50 and a 52 week high of $50.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 2.82 and a current ratio of 5.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.75. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $29.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.50.

Aaron's (NYSE:PRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $604.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $586.25 million. Aaron's had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.53%. The business's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

Aaron's Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th were issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Aaron's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.28%.

Insider Activity at Aaron's

In related news, CEO Steven A. Michaels acquired 14,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $29.03 per share, with a total value of $406,420.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 559,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,246,378.23. The trade was a 2.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brian Garner acquired 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.93 per share, for a total transaction of $101,255.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 132,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,836,031.21. This trade represents a 2.71% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Aaron's Company Profile

PROG Holdings, Inc NYSE: PRG is a financial technology holding company based in Salt Lake City, Utah with three business segments: Progressive Leasing, which offers lease-to-own transactions primarily to credit-challenged consumers through e-commerce and point-of-sale retail partners, via online, mobile, and in-store solutions; Vive Financial, which provides consumers who may not qualify for traditional prime lending with a variety of second-look, revolving credit products through private label and branded credit cards; and Four Technologies, which provides consumers of all credit backgrounds Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options through four interest-free installments via its platform, Four.