Lazard Asset Management LLC Purchases New Position in Aramark $ARMK

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management purchased 30,433 Aramark shares during the first quarter, valued at approximately $1.23 million. Several other institutional investors also increased their holdings.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Aramark, with 11 Buy ratings and two Holds; the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.62.
• Aramark exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.49 in adjusted earnings per share versus a $0.47 consensus estimate and $4.91 billion in revenue, up 14.7% year over year.

Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 30,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,234,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Aramark by 5.6% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,444 shares of the company's stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Aramark by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 10,590 shares of the company's stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,294 shares of the company's stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S grew its position in Aramark by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 2,200 shares of the company's stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARMK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Aramark from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Aramark from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Aramark in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $63.00 price objective on shares of Aramark in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Aramark in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.62.

Aramark Price Performance

Aramark stock opened at $56.28 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $55.50 and its 200 day moving average is $47.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $14.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.12. Aramark has a one year low of $35.07 and a one year high of $58.68.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.02. Aramark had a net margin of 1.84% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The business had revenue of $4.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Aramark has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.180-2.280 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Aramark will post 2.24 EPS for the current year.

About Aramark

Aramark NYSE: ARMK is a global provider of food services, facilities management and uniform solutions, serving clients across a wide array of industries including education, healthcare, business and government. The company operates through three primary segments: Food and Support Services, Uniform and Career Apparel, and Facility Services, delivering integrated solutions designed to enhance guest experiences, improve operational efficiencies and maintain safe, clean environments. Aramark's offerings include corporate dining, patient and senior nutrition, campus dining, sports and entertainment concessions, custodial services, technical maintenance and industrial laundry.

Founded in 1959 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Aramark has expanded its footprint to more than 20 countries, with a strong presence in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

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