Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) Short Interest Update

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,740,000 shares, an increase of 14.8% from the May 31st total of 5,000,000 shares. Approximately 8.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,570,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Price Performance

Shares of ASO stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $50.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,211,796 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,469,946. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.74, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 12 month low of $42.83 and a 12 month high of $75.73. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $55.20 and its 200 day moving average is $62.00.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 27.18% and a net margin of 8.17%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 20th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 20th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ASO. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Monday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.87.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $72,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,200. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the first quarter worth approximately $68,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 517.6% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $73,000.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Company 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.