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

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,130,000 shares, a decrease of 15.1% from the August 15th total of 7,220,000 shares. Approximately 8.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,790,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on ASO shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $53.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $68.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.25, for a total transaction of $33,906.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $548,250.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 676,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,656,000 after acquiring an additional 15,285 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,064 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter worth about $420,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 58.0% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 1,169 shares during the last quarter.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ ASO opened at $59.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.29 billion, a PE ratio of 9.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 12-month low of $42.83 and a 12-month high of $75.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $53.73 and a 200 day moving average of $57.35.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 10th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.07. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 7.98%. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 19th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 19th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.73%.

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.