National Bank of Canada FI Has $21.63 Million Stock Position in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK)

National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) by 2,316.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 774,152 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 742,116 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.30% of Aramark worth $21,630,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Aramark by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 8,129 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aramark in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Aramark by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 28,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $790,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Aramark by 182.0% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,443,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,435,000 after acquiring an additional 931,904 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in shares of Aramark by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 136,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,826,000 after purchasing an additional 5,630 shares during the last quarter.

Aramark Price Performance

Shares of Aramark stock opened at $31.62 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.51. Aramark has a 12-month low of $23.95 and a 12-month high of $33.04. The firm has a market cap of $8.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.29 billion. Aramark had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 3.37%. Aramark’s quarterly revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Aramark will post 1.56 EPS for the current year.

Aramark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.095 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $0.38 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Aramark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on ARMK shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Aramark from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Aramark from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Aramark in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Aramark in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.04.

Aramark Profile

Aramark provides food and facilities services to education, healthcare, business and industry, sports, leisure, and corrections clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Food and Support Services United States, and Food and Support Services International. The company offers food-related managed services, including dining, catering, food service management, and convenience-oriented retail services; non-clinical food and food-related support services, such as patient food and nutrition, retail food, environmental services, and procurement services; and plant operations and maintenance, custodial/housekeeping, energy management, grounds keeping, and capital project management services.