Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) in a report published on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial reissued a buy rating and issued a $77.00 price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Wedbush reissued an outperform rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $88.00 to $83.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued 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 price target of $74.47.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ASO opened at $59.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Academy Sports and Outdoors has a 12 month low of $42.83 and a 12 month high of $75.73. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $67.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.24. The company has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.35.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. This is a positive change from Academy Sports and Outdoors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 25th. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASO. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 124.0% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 13,562,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $534,370,000 after purchasing an additional 7,507,589 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 73.0% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,834,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,872,000 after buying an additional 1,196,076 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 11,157.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,079,773 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,542,000 after buying an additional 1,070,181 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 680.6% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,147,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,212,000 after buying an additional 1,000,500 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 11.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,462,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $372,817,000 after buying an additional 958,800 shares during the period.

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.