AlphaQuest LLC Lowers Holdings in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK)

AlphaQuest LLC reduced its stake in shares of Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Free Report) by 67.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,948 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,230 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Aramark were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Aramark by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 174,906 shares of the company's stock worth $6,445,000 after purchasing an additional 40,366 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. boosted its holdings in Aramark by 43.0% during the fourth quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 304,999 shares of the company's stock worth $11,380,000 after buying an additional 91,718 shares in the last quarter. Inceptionr LLC grew its position in Aramark by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 48,802 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,821,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Aramark in the fourth quarter valued at $3,979,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Aramark by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 72,635 shares of the company's stock worth $2,710,000 after acquiring an additional 694 shares during the period.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ARMK shares. Citigroup started coverage on Aramark in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $47.00 price objective on shares of Aramark in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered Aramark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Aramark from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Aramark from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Aramark presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.42.

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Aramark Stock Performance

Shares of Aramark stock opened at $34.44 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $37.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.07. The company has a market cap of $9.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.11 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.94. Aramark has a one year low of $29.82 and a one year high of $42.49.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. Aramark had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 1.94%. The business had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.41 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Aramark will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Aramark Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.105 per share. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from Aramark's previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. Aramark's payout ratio is presently 33.07%.

Aramark Profile

Aramark provides food and facilities services to education, healthcare, business and industry, sports, leisure, and corrections clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Food and Support Services United States, and Food and Support Services International. The company offers food-related managed services, including dining, catering, food service management, and convenience-oriented retail services; non-clinical food and food-related support services, such as patient food and nutrition, retail food, environmental services, and procurement services; and plant operations and maintenance, custodial/housekeeping, energy management, grounds keeping, and capital project management services.

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