Short Interest in Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) Rises By 18.0%

Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,360,000 shares, a growth of 18.0% from the September 30th total of 2,000,000 shares. Approximately 4.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 587,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Transient C. Taylor sold 15,127 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.00, for a total transaction of $514,318.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $498,134. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Upbound Group news, EVP Transient C. Taylor sold 15,127 shares of Upbound Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.00, for a total value of $514,318.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $498,134. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 1,065 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $29.25 per share, with a total value of $31,151.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 85,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,493,094.50. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upbound Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Upbound Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 47.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the second quarter valued at about $42,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Upbound Group by 232.0% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Upbound Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $89,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Upbound Group in a report on Friday, September 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Upbound Group from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Upbound Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

Upbound Group Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:UPBD opened at $26.73 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.35 and a beta of 2.00. Upbound Group has a 52-week low of $25.17 and a 52-week high of $38.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 3.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21. The business’s 50 day moving average is $30.57 and its 200 day moving average is $31.52.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.01. Upbound Group had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Upbound Group will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Upbound Group’s payout ratio is 151.02%.

Upbound Group Company Profile

Upbound Group, Inc leases household durable goods to customers on a lease-to-own basis in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Rent-A-Center, Acima, Mexico, and Franchising. The company's brands, such as Rent-A-Center and Acima that facilitate consumer transactions across a range of store-based and virtual channels.