Employees Retirement System of Texas Invests $26.97 Million in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 499,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,971,000. Employees Retirement System of Texas owned 0.65% of Academy Sports and Outdoors at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 48,019 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,892,000 after buying an additional 1,951 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 117.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 850,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,529,000 after purchasing an additional 459,085 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 42.0% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,000 after purchasing an additional 1,419 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in the 1st quarter valued at $447,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 57.0% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 42,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,693,000 after buying an additional 15,599 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $72.00 price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. B. Riley raised their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $63.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, September 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, September 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other news, EVP Samuel J. Johnson sold 40,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.03, for a total transaction of $2,027,765.93. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 70,303 shares in the company, valued at $3,517,259.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $53,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $506,750. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Samuel J. Johnson sold 40,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.03, for a total value of $2,027,765.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 70,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,517,259.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,596 shares of company stock valued at $2,128,510 in the last 90 days. 3.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

Shares of ASO traded up $0.98 on Tuesday, reaching $49.15. 726,426 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,565,510. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $42.83 and a 52-week high of $69.02. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of 7.09, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.28. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 31st. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.58 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 32.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 6.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 13th were paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 12th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s payout ratio is 5.30%.

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, camping accessories and equipment, sunglasses, backpacks, and sports bags; 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, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment.