Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,771 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,366 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Upbound Group were worth $3,435,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPBD. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Upbound Group by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 374.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 2,590 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Upbound Group by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc purchased a new position in Upbound Group during the fourth quarter worth about $174,000. 90.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 1,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $29.01 per share, for a total transaction of $33,245.46. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 86,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,505,883.80. This represents a 1.34 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Fahmi Karam purchased 11,500 shares of Upbound Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.82 per share, for a total transaction of $296,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 164,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,251,831.04. The trade was a 7.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Upbound Group Stock Up 0.9 %

UPBD opened at $23.96 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.84 and a beta of 2.01. The business has a 50-day moving average of $27.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.51. Upbound Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.35 and a 12 month high of $38.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 3.66 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.02. Upbound Group had a return on equity of 35.47% and a net margin of 2.86%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Upbound Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Loop Capital reduced their price target on Upbound Group from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

About Upbound Group

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.