Academy Sports and Outdoors Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:ASO)

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 10,137 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 357% compared to the typical volume of 2,216 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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 research report on Monday, August 5th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $68.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $62.50.

Insider Activity at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other Academy Sports and Outdoors news, Director Jeffrey C. Tweedy sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.00, for a total value of $74,400.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 8,906 shares of the company's stock, valued at $552,172. This trade represents a 11.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 98.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 738 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the period. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ASO traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $49.29. 945,055 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,424,891. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $55.14 and a 200 day moving average of $54.46. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 1 year low of $45.47 and a 1 year high of $75.73.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 25.56% and a net margin of 7.98%. The firm's revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Academy Sports and Outdoors will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 19th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 19th. Academy Sports and Outdoors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.79%.

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.