Vulcan Value Partners LLC Boosts Position in Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG)

Key Points

• Vulcan Value Partners LLC has increased its holdings in Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. by 84.3%, now owning 681,746 shares worth approximately $18.1 million.
• Aaron's reported $1.02 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a net margin of 8.53% and revenue of $604.66 million.
• Insider purchases include CEO Steven A. Michaels acquiring 14,000 shares at $29.03 each, increasing his stake in the company.

Vulcan Value Partners LLC increased its stake in Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. (NYSE:PRG - Free Report) by 84.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 681,746 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 311,917 shares during the quarter. Vulcan Value Partners LLC owned 1.69% of Aaron's worth $18,134,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Aaron's by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,937,208 shares of the company's stock worth $208,646,000 after acquiring an additional 76,810 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aaron's by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,564,441 shares of the company's stock worth $108,373,000 after acquiring an additional 134,123 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Aaron's by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 907,100 shares of the company's stock worth $24,129,000 after acquiring an additional 127,384 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Aaron's by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 562,539 shares of the company's stock worth $23,773,000 after acquiring an additional 9,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Aaron's by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 517,984 shares of the company's stock worth $21,890,000 after acquiring an additional 33,991 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.92% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aaron's

In other news, CFO Brian Garner acquired 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.93 per share, with a total value of $101,255.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 132,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,836,031.21. This represents a 2.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven A. Michaels purchased 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $29.03 per share, for a total transaction of $406,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 559,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,246,378.23. The trade was a 2.57% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 3.21% of the company's stock.

Aaron's Trading Down 4.2%

Aaron's stock traded down $1.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.49. The stock had a trading volume of 517,905 shares, compared to its average volume of 450,447. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.68 and a 200 day moving average of $30.75. Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.50 and a 52-week high of $50.28. The company has a quick ratio of 2.82, a current ratio of 5.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Aaron's (NYSE:PRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.23. Aaron's had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.53%. The company had revenue of $604.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $586.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. Aaron's's revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Aaron's Holdings Company, Inc. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aaron's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. Aaron's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Aaron's from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Aaron's from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Aaron's from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, BTIG Research downgraded shares of Aaron's from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $24.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.00.

Aaron's Company Profile

PROG Holdings, Inc NYSE: PRG is a financial technology holding company based in Salt Lake City, Utah with three business segments: Progressive Leasing, which offers lease-to-own transactions primarily to credit-challenged consumers through e-commerce and point-of-sale retail partners, via online, mobile, and in-store solutions; Vive Financial, which provides consumers who may not qualify for traditional prime lending with a variety of second-look, revolving credit products through private label and branded credit cards; and Four Technologies, which provides consumers of all credit backgrounds Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options through four interest-free installments via its platform, Four.