Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $2.34 Million Investment in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 40,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,342,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,649,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,413,000 after purchasing an additional 197,384 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,023,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,092,000 after purchasing an additional 50,715 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 331.4% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 959,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,210,000 after buying an additional 737,212 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 764,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,005,000 after buying an additional 13,860 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 712,226 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,974,000 after buying an additional 90,592 shares in the last quarter.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Trading Down 4.6 %

NASDAQ:ASO opened at $46.07 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.25. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $43.16 and a twelve month high of $68.96. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $50.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.14. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 7.49% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is an increase from Academy Sports and Outdoors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s payout ratio is currently 9.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ASO shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Academy Sports and Outdoors currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.13.

Academy Sports and Outdoors 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.