Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Upbound Group has been downgraded from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating a shift in analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Raymond James Financial has set a new target price of $35.00 for Upbound Group, down from a previous $40.00, while the stock operates with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Insider activity shows that Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 1,653 shares, increasing his ownership stake and indicating confidence in the company’s prospects.

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Separately, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down from $40.00) on shares of Upbound Group in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.50.

Upbound Group Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of NASDAQ UPBD traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $23.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 147,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 583,670. The company has a current ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29. The business's 50 day moving average is $24.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.65. Upbound Group has a 12-month low of $19.65 and a 12-month high of $36.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.13 and a beta of 1.74.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.07. Upbound Group had a return on equity of 36.26% and a net margin of 2.28%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Upbound Group will post 4.28 EPS for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. Upbound Group's dividend payout ratio is 87.64%.

Insider Transactions at Upbound Group

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 1,653 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.90 per share, with a total value of $42,812.70. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 89,400 shares in the company, valued at $2,315,460. This trade represents a 1.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UPBD. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its stake in Upbound Group by 59.9% in the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,311 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in Upbound Group by 35.5% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,880 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Upbound Group by 414.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,617 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 2,108 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Upbound Group by 179.4% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,912 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 2,512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Palouse Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Upbound Group by 64.3% during the 1st quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,623 shares of the company's stock valued at $159,000 after acquiring an additional 2,592 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.30% of the company's stock.

About Upbound Group

Upbound Group, Inc leases household durable goods to customers on a lease-to-own basis in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Rent-A-Center, Acima, Mexico, and Franchising. The company's brands, such as Rent-A-Center and Acima that facilitate consumer transactions across a range of store-based and virtual channels.