Wall Street Zen Downgrades Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) to Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen has downgraded Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating, signaling a more cautious outlook for the company.
• Escalade reported a loss in its quarterly earnings, with $0.13 earnings per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 and falling short of revenue expectations.
• Insider selling has been notable, with CFO Stephen Wawrin reducing his share position by 4.82%, amidst ongoing institutional interest in the stock with 65.22% owned by institutional investors.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Escalade Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ESCA opened at $11.78 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $13.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 4.05 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Escalade has a 1-year low of $11.76 and a 1-year high of $16.99. The company has a market cap of $162.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.74.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.10). Escalade had a return on equity of 7.49% and a net margin of 5.54%. The company had revenue of $54.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.03 million. Analysts forecast that Escalade will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Stephen Wawrin sold 2,177 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.16, for a total transaction of $33,003.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 43,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $651,880. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 28.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Escalade during the 1st quarter worth about $4,731,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Escalade during the 1st quarter worth about $305,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Escalade by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 17,269 shares of the company's stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 2,510 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Escalade by 98.1% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 37,474 shares of the company's stock worth $535,000 after acquiring an additional 18,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Escalade during the 4th quarter worth about $217,000. 65.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Escalade

Escalade, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, imports, and sells sporting goods in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company provides various sporting goods brands in basketball goals, archery, indoor and outdoor game recreation, and fitness products.

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