Short Interest in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) Expands By 14.8%

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) saw a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,740,000 shares, a growth of 14.8% from the May 31st total of 5,000,000 shares. Currently, 8.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,570,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ASO shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $82.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price objective (up from $65.00) on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $80.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.21.

Insider Activity at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $72,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ASO. Norges Bank bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 4th quarter worth about $47,768,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 36.6% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,089,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,878,000 after buying an additional 559,414 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,933,000. LSV Asset Management lifted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,652,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,068,000 after buying an additional 365,855 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 953.5% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 403,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,629,000 after acquiring an additional 365,168 shares in the last quarter.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

ASO stock opened at $53.25 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.14, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a twelve month low of $42.83 and a twelve month high of $75.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $55.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.15.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 11th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 8.17% and a return on equity of 27.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Analysts predict that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

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