Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Buys 528,367 Shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. has increased its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. by 36.1%, acquiring an additional 528,367 shares, bringing its total ownership to around 3.00% valued at approximately $90.9 million.
• Academy Sports reported $0.76 earnings per share for the latest quarter, which was below analysts' expectation of $0.89, with revenues decreasing by 0.9% year-over-year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, illustrating a 1.0% yield and a low dividend payout ratio of 9.56%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Free Report) by 36.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,992,997 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 528,367 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 3.00% of Academy Sports and Outdoors worth $90,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASO. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 101.5% in the first quarter. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP now owns 816 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 45.6% during the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,156 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1,041.7% during the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 25.6% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 280.0% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,657 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 1,221 shares in the last quarter.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 1.1%

ASO traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $49.63. 816,061 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,398,886. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.34 and a 1-year high of $64.61. The stock's 50-day moving average is $48.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.43. The stock has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.12, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.13). Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 6.55%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 19th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. Academy Sports and Outdoors's dividend payout ratio is 9.56%.

Insider Transactions at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Christopher Lee Turner sold 4,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $195,712.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,084 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $315,096.32. This represents a 38.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on ASO shares. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Loop Capital set a $65.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Academy Sports and Outdoors presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.53.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Company Profile

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a sporting goods and outdoor recreational retailer in the United States. The company outdoor division comprises camping products, such as coolers and drinkware, and camping accessories and equipment,; fishing products, including marine equipment and fishing rods, reels, and baits and equipment; and hunting products, which includes firearms, ammunition, archery and archery equipment, camouflage apparel, waders, shooting accessories, gun safes, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment.