Heartland Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 110.6%, owning 147,450 shares worth $6.7 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Analysts have set price targets for Academy Sports and Outdoors, with Loop Capital and Telsey Advisory Group both raising their targets to $65.00, indicating a positive outlook.
• Academy Sports and Outdoors recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.94%.

Heartland Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Free Report) by 110.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,450 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 77,450 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned 0.22% of Academy Sports and Outdoors worth $6,725,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,273,158 shares of the company's stock worth $58,069,000 after buying an additional 98,582 shares during the period. Madison Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the first quarter worth $205,000. Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 76.2% during the first quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 8,459 shares of the company's stock worth $387,000 after acquiring an additional 3,657 shares during the period. Trust Investment Advisors increased its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1.9% in the first quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 15,466 shares of the company's stock worth $705,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 2.0% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 77,487 shares of the company's stock worth $3,534,000 after buying an additional 1,519 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 stock was sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $195,712.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at $315,096.32. The trade was a 38.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.62% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Price Performance

Academy Sports and Outdoors stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.66. 378,722 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,670,112. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.34 and a 52-week high of $64.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.52. The company has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 19th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. Academy Sports and Outdoors's payout ratio is 9.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on ASO shares. Loop Capital set a $65.00 target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Citigroup decreased their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Academy Sports and Outdoors presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.06.

Academy Sports and Outdoors 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.