Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Increases Holdings in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Free Report) by 553.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,791 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,006 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Aramark were worth $1,305,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ARMK. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Aramark by 93.0% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 770 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 45.7% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 988 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in Aramark by 167.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,424 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Aramark during the 4th quarter valued at $72,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Aramark in the 4th quarter valued at about $83,000.

Aramark Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE ARMK traded up $0.67 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $43.08. 1,028,887 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,990,401. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.21. Aramark has a one year low of $29.92 and a one year high of $43.10. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $38.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.05. The company has a market cap of $11.29 billion, a PE ratio of 33.15 and a beta of 1.28.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.01. Aramark had a return on equity of 15.07% and a net margin of 1.97%. The business had revenue of $4.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.35 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.30 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Aramark will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Aramark Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a $0.105 dividend. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. Aramark's payout ratio is 32.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of Aramark in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Aramark from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Aramark from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Aramark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aramark has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.91.

Aramark Company Profile

Aramark provides food and facilities services to education, healthcare, business and industry, sports, leisure, and corrections clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Food and Support Services United States, and Food and Support Services International. The company offers food-related managed services, including dining, catering, food service management, and convenience-oriented retail services; non-clinical food and food-related support services, such as patient food and nutrition, retail food, environmental services, and procurement services; and plant operations and maintenance, custodial/housekeeping, energy management, grounds keeping, and capital project management services.