ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO) Shares Down 6.8% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• ARKO shares fell 6.8% to $3.81 in mid-day trading, below both its 50-day moving average of $4.37 and 200-day moving average of $6.19.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but averages to a “Hold” rating, with a consensus price target of $14.50; recommendations range from “Sell” to “Buy.”
• The company’s latest quarterly earnings missed estimates, reporting $0.04 per share versus $0.15 expected. ARKO pays a $0.03 quarterly dividend, but its annualized payout ratio is high at 171.43%.

ARKO Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO - Get Free Report) dropped 6.8% during mid-day trading on Friday. The stock traded as low as $3.80 and last traded at $3.81. Approximately 534,719 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 555,232 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.09.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ARKO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho set a $22.00 price objective on shares of ARKO in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of ARKO from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, September 25th. Raymond James Financial cut shares of ARKO from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $8.00 to $7.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of ARKO from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ARKO presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $14.50.

ARKO Trading Down 6.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The business's 50-day moving average is $4.37 and its 200 day moving average is $6.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $427.44 million, a P/E ratio of 54.43 and a beta of 0.93.

ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.11). ARKO had a net margin of 0.19% and a return on equity of 4.02%. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.99 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that ARKO Corp. will post 0.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ARKO Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 20th. ARKO's dividend payout ratio is currently 171.43%.

Institutional Trading of ARKO

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in shares of ARKO by 5.6% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 76,806 shares of the company's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 4,057 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in ARKO by 201.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,681 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 4,468 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in ARKO during the 2nd quarter worth $58,000. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in ARKO during the 1st quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in ARKO during the 2nd quarter worth about $138,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.29% of the company's stock.

About ARKO

ARKO Corp. NASDAQ: ARKO is a convenience store and fuel retail operator in the United States. Through its subsidiary GPM Investments, the company operates convenience stores that sell gasoline, diesel fuel, food, beverages, tobacco products, and other everyday consumer goods. Many locations also offer prepared food, loyalty programs, and additional retail services.

ARKO operates stores under a variety of regional and national banners, including fas mart, E-Z Mart, Scotchman, Young's, Li'l Cricket, BreadBox, and others.

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