Short Interest in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) Declines By 11.6%

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,540,000 shares, a drop of 11.6% from the January 15th total of 8,530,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,710,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.4 days. Approximately 11.0% of the company's shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ASO. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $61.67.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 4.6% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,480 shares of the company's stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Simmons Bank boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1.9% during the third quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 10,860 shares of the company's stock worth $634,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 6,565 shares of the company's stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA now owns 5,600 shares of the company's stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 4,916 shares of the company's stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ ASO traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $51.47. 936,905 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,415,567. The stock has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.45, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.88. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 1-year low of $44.73 and a 1-year high of $75.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.30). The business had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.39 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a net margin of 7.49% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.38 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Academy Sports and Outdoors's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.22%.

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.