Allianz Asset Management GmbH Grows Stake in Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in shares of Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG - Free Report) by 16.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 907,100 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 127,384 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 2.25% of Aaron's worth $24,129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aaron's during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Aaron's by 765.6% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Aaron's by 248.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,370 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aaron's during the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aaron's during the 4th quarter valued at $235,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.92% of the company's stock.

Aaron's Price Performance

NYSE PRG traded up $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $32.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 544,548 shares, compared to its average volume of 413,270. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a PE ratio of 6.45 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 5.71 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $29.40 and a 200 day moving average of $31.06. Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. has a one year low of $23.50 and a one year high of $50.28.

Aaron's (NYSE:PRG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $604.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $586.25 million. Aaron's had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.53%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. Analysts expect that Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. will post 3.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aaron's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Aaron's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.28%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BTIG Research cut Aaron's from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, July 14th. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on Aaron's from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on Aaron's from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Aaron's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.00.

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.