Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Stock Position in Aramark $ARMK

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. significantly reduced its holdings in Aramark by 76.4%, now owning 104,841 shares valued at approximately $3.62 million.
• Several other institutional investors have increased their stakes in Aramark, with Fifth Third Bancorp raising its holdings by 21.1% during the first quarter.
• Analyst ratings for Aramark show a consensus "Buy" rating with a target price around $45.44, reflecting positive market sentiment despite recent evaluations.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its stake in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Free Report) by 76.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104,841 shares of the company's stock after selling 338,963 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in Aramark were worth $3,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Aramark by 40,750.0% in the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 817 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 815 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Aramark by 83.2% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,411 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 641 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aramark in the fourth quarter worth about $72,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Aramark by 82.6% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,472 shares of the company's stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 1,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Aramark by 21.1% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,859 shares of the company's stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the last quarter.

Aramark Price Performance

Shares of Aramark stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $39.11. 126,311 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,026,353. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.59 and a 200 day moving average of $38.10. Aramark has a fifty-two week low of $29.92 and a fifty-two week high of $44.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.28 billion, a PE ratio of 28.93 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40. Aramark had a return on equity of 15.67% and a net margin of 2.02%.The business had revenue of $4.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.31 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Aramark has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.910-1.980 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Aramark will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Aramark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th were issued a dividend of $0.105 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Aramark's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Aramark in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Aramark from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Baird R W raised Aramark from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group set a $46.00 price target on Aramark and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised Aramark from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $47.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aramark presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.44.

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.