Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Buys Shares of 5,525 Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Key Points

• Empirical Wealth Management has acquired a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors, purchasing 5,525 shares valued at approximately $252,000 in the 1st quarter.
• Academy Sports and Outdoors recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, translating to an annual yield of 1.1%.
• Despite recent price target cuts by major analysts, the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $57.06.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 5,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $252,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP raised its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 101.5% in the 1st quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP now owns 816 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 45.6% in the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1,041.7% in the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 25.6% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the period. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 724.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 1,428 shares during the period.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:ASO traded down $0.64 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.56. 417,529 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,656,530. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a one year low of $33.34 and a one year high of $64.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $48.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.47. The company has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 9.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.30.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 6.55%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 19th were issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Academy Sports and Outdoors's payout ratio is 9.56%.

Insider Transactions at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Christopher Lee Turner sold 4,400 shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total value of $195,712.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $315,096.32. The trade was a 38.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 3.62% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.53.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Company Profile

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a sporting goods and outdoor recreational retailer in the United States. The company outdoor division comprises camping products, such as coolers and drinkware, and camping accessories and equipment,; fishing products, including marine equipment and fishing rods, reels, and baits and equipment; and hunting products, which includes firearms, ammunition, archery and archery equipment, camouflage apparel, waders, shooting accessories, gun safes, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment.