Hennessy Advisors Inc. Boosts Stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) by 44.1% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 73,900 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,600 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors were worth $4,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the first quarter worth about $68,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 517.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the fourth quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,000.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Price Performance

Shares of ASO traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $53.29. The stock had a trading volume of 1,204,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,453,100. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $55.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.10. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $42.83 and a 52 week high of $75.73. The company has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

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

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 20th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s payout ratio is 6.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on ASO shares. Bank of America cut 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 report on Tuesday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. UBS Group lowered Academy Sports and Outdoors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $81.00 to $58.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

About Academy Sports and Outdoors

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.