Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC Invests $402,000 in Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. $PLAY

Key Points

• Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC acquired 22,900 shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAY) in the first quarter, worth approximately $402,000, increasing its ownership to about 0.07% of the company.
• CEO Tarun Lal purchased 8,060 shares at an average price of $31.26, while SVP John Mulleady sold 5,931 shares at an average price of $32.79, reflecting contrasting insider trading activities.
• Despite missing earnings estimates with a reported $0.76 EPS against a $0.96 consensus, analysts have raised price targets for the stock, with an average target price of $33.83 and a mix of hold and buy ratings.

Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAY - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 22,900 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $402,000. Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Dave & Buster's Entertainment as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PLAY. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment by 4.5% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 121,640 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 5,243 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Dave & Buster's Entertainment by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 578,639 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $10,169,000 after purchasing an additional 10,905 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 97,658 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,716,000 after purchasing an additional 19,358 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment during the 1st quarter worth about $2,453,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment during the first quarter worth about $280,000. 91.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Dave & Buster's Entertainment Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment stock traded down $0.72 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $24.11. The stock had a trading volume of 627,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 859,099. The firm has a market capitalization of $833.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.87 and a beta of 2.14. Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $15.08 and a 1 year high of $43.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.69. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.05.

Dave & Buster's Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The restaurant operator reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by ($0.20). Dave & Buster's Entertainment had a return on equity of 40.67% and a net margin of 1.83%.The firm had revenue of $567.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $572.12 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dave & Buster's Entertainment

In related news, SVP John Mulleady sold 5,931 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.79, for a total transaction of $194,477.49. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 42,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,395,214.50. This represents a 12.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Tarun Lal acquired 8,060 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $31.26 per share, for a total transaction of $251,955.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 8,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at $251,955.60. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PLAY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Dave & Buster's Entertainment from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Dave & Buster's Entertainment from $22.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Loop Capital upped their target price on Dave & Buster's Entertainment from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Dave & Buster's Entertainment from $18.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.83.

Dave & Buster's Entertainment Profile

Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc owns and operates entertainment and dining venues for adults and families. Its venues offer a menu of entrees and appetizers, as well as a selection of non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages; and an assortment of entertainment attractions centered on playing games and watching live sports, and other televised events.