Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

Shares of Aramark (NYSE:ARMK - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $35.68, but opened at $34.37. Aramark shares last traded at $34.31, with a volume of 249,887 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on ARMK. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Aramark in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Aramark from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Aramark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Aramark in a report on Monday, February 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Aramark presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.42.

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Aramark Stock Performance

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $37.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The company has a market capitalization of $9.03 billion, a PE ratio of 26.82 and a beta of 1.60.

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

Aramark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 24th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.105 dividend. 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. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Aramark's payout ratio is currently 33.07%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aramark

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Aramark by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,497,580 shares of the company's stock worth $951,315,000 after purchasing an additional 178,147 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Aramark by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 16,268,682 shares of the company's stock worth $606,986,000 after buying an additional 554,239 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Aramark by 63.2% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 13,593,734 shares of the company's stock worth $507,182,000 after acquiring an additional 5,263,817 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI lifted its position in shares of Aramark by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 11,454,740 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,376,000 after acquiring an additional 860,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Aramark by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,511,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $317,551,000 after acquiring an additional 1,940,214 shares during the last quarter.

Aramark Company 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.