RCI Hospitality (NASDAQ:RICK) Shares Cross Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Technical move: RCI Hospitality briefly crossed above its 200-day moving average of $24.76, trading as high as $24.86 before last trading at $24.28 on volume of 38,813 shares.
• Analyst sentiment and earnings miss: The stock carries an average "Sell" rating (Weiss reaffirmed a sell) and the company reported a large EPS shortfall—($0.63) vs. $1.81 expected—despite a slight revenue beat.
• Dividend and institutional interest: RCI raised its quarterly dividend to $0.08 (annualized $0.32, ~1.3% yield) and roughly 53.8% of the shares are held by hedge funds/institutions, while market cap is about $187.2M.

RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:RICK - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $24.76 and traded as high as $24.86. RCI Hospitality shares last traded at $24.28, with a volume of 38,813 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of RCI Hospitality in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Sell".

RCI Hospitality Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock's 50-day moving average is $22.98 and its 200 day moving average is $24.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $187.20 million, a PE ratio of 20.23 and a beta of 0.77.

RCI Hospitality (NASDAQ:RICK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported ($0.63) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81 by ($2.44). The company had revenue of $70.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $69.80 million. RCI Hospitality had a net margin of 3.87% and a return on equity of 4.05%. As a group, equities analysts expect that RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc. will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current year.

RCI Hospitality Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were given a $0.08 dividend. This is a positive change from RCI Hospitality's previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. RCI Hospitality's payout ratio is 26.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RICK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in RCI Hospitality by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 516,933 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $15,772,000 after purchasing an additional 14,603 shares during the last quarter. Steel Partners Holdings L.P. purchased a new position in RCI Hospitality during the 4th quarter worth $7,459,000. State Street Corp grew its position in RCI Hospitality by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 185,138 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $4,414,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in RCI Hospitality by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 178,588 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,449,000 after purchasing an additional 7,140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in RCI Hospitality by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 99,461 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 23,015 shares during the last quarter. 53.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About RCI Hospitality

RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc operates as a diversified hospitality and entertainment company focused on the ownership and operation of adult nightclubs and themed sports bars throughout the United States and select international markets. The company's U.S. Nightclub segment includes venues branded as Rick's Cabaret, Club Onyx and various other upscale adult entertainment clubs, offering private dance experiences, VIP services and live performances. Its Restaurant & Bar segment operates Bombshells, a brunch-themed sports bar chain featuring chef-driven menus, craft cocktails and game-day viewing in a military-inspired setting.

In addition to its brick-and-mortar venues, RCI Hospitality deploys proprietary digital platforms for talent recruitment, training and scheduling, helping to streamline operations and drive customer engagement.

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