Bank of America Corp DE Acquires New Stake in Upbound Group, Inc. $UPBD

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 294,594 Upbound Group shares worth approximately $6.25 million, representing about 0.51% of the company. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 90.30% of UPBD.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28. Several firms recently downgraded the stock, including Zacks Research to “strong sell” and BTIG Research to “neutral.”
• Upbound Group exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.07 versus the $1.05 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $1.16 billion. The company declared a $0.39 quarterly dividend, implying a 9.7% annualized yield, though its payout ratio is above 100%.

Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 294,594 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,251,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.51% of Upbound Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Upbound Group in the 2nd quarter worth $479,000. Miller Value Partners LLC purchased a new position in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter worth $5,475,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $500,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $838,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Upbound Group in the second quarter valued at about $2,504,000. 90.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Upbound Group

In related news, EVP Anthony J. Blasquez sold 10,000 shares of Upbound Group 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 43,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $824,065.45. This trade represents a 18.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 2,295 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.09 per share, with a total value of $46,106.55. Following the acquisition, the director owned 96,681 shares in the company, valued at $1,942,321.29. This represents a 2.43% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UPBD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Upbound Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Upbound Group from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research cut shares of Upbound Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Upbound Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, BTIG Research lowered shares of Upbound Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $28.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.00.

Upbound Group Stock Performance

Shares of UPBD stock opened at $16.09 on Monday. Upbound Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.76 and a 52-week high of $24.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock has a market cap of $938.05 million, a PE ratio of 10.45 and a beta of 1.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.94.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.07 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 analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. Upbound Group had a return on equity of 34.53% and a net margin of 1.90%.Upbound Group's revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $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, equities analysts expect that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 6th. Upbound Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 101.30%.

Upbound Group Company Profile

Upbound Group, Inc is a consumer leasing and retail services company headquartered in Plano, Texas. The company operates through two primary brands: Rent-A-Center, a lease-to-own provider, and Acima, a technology-enabled point-of-sale leasing platform. Its services are designed to give consumers access to household and consumer products through flexible leasing arrangements, including options that may not require traditional credit.

Rent-A-Center offers furniture, appliances, electronics, computers, smartphones and other durable goods through company-operated and franchised stores, as well as digital channels.

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