Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume Following Analyst Upgrade

Accel Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:ACEL) saw strong trading volume on Thursday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on the stock from $13.00 to $16.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. 178,250 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the previous session’s volume of 254,633 shares.The stock last traded at $10.23 and had previously closed at $11.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accel Entertainment

In other Accel Entertainment news, insider Derek Harmer sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.21, for a total transaction of $112,100.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 187,553 shares in the company, valued at $2,102,469.13. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Karl Mr. Peterson sold 16,707 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $200,484.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,478,938 shares in the company, valued at $29,747,256. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Derek Harmer sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.21, for a total transaction of $112,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 187,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,102,469.13. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,999 shares of company stock worth $1,520,439 in the last ninety days. 17.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Accel Entertainment

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Accel Entertainment by 974.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 974,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,669,000 after purchasing an additional 883,688 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Accel Entertainment by 7.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,101,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,964,000 after buying an additional 210,862 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Accel Entertainment by 4.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 68,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $753,000 after buying an additional 2,642 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Accel Entertainment by 125.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 56,724 shares of the company’s stock worth $621,000 after buying an additional 31,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Accel Entertainment by 75.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 30,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 13,316 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.39% of the company’s stock.

Accel Entertainment Trading Down 16.4 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $11.45 and a 200 day moving average of $10.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.85, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $813.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68 and a beta of 1.42.

Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.08. Accel Entertainment had a return on equity of 39.62% and a net margin of 3.90%. The company had revenue of $297.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $286.32 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Accel Entertainment, Inc. will post 0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Accel Entertainment

Accel Entertainment, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a distributed gaming operator in the United States. It is involved in the installation, maintenance, and operation of gaming terminals; redemption devices that disburse winnings and contain automated teller machine (ATM) functionality; and other amusement devices in authorized non-casino locations, such as restaurants, bars, taverns, convenience stores, liquor stores, truck stops, and grocery stores.