RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:RICK) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:RICK) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,209,464 shares, a growth of 25.7% from the February 26th total of 962,068 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 64,465 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 18.8 days. Currently, 17.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Trading of RCI Hospitality

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of RCI Hospitality during the 4th quarter worth about $211,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in RCI Hospitality by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 25,938 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,114,000 after buying an additional 2,934 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in RCI Hospitality by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 4,979 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of RCI Hospitality by 16.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 186,066 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $7,093,000 after acquiring an additional 26,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of RCI Hospitality by 4.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,523 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of RCI Hospitality in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, RCI Hospitality has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.00.

RCI Hospitality Price Performance

RICK traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, hitting $23.27. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 43,885 shares, compared to its average volume of 78,051. The firm has a market capitalization of $179.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.39 and a beta of 0.82. RCI Hospitality has a twelve month low of $20.76 and a twelve month high of $47.00. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82.

RCI Hospitality (NASDAQ:RICK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported ($0.63) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by ($2.44). RCI Hospitality had a net margin of 3.87% and a return on equity of 4.05%. The business had revenue of $70.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $69.80 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that RCI Hospitality will post 4.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RCI Hospitality Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This is a positive change from RCI Hospitality’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. RCI Hospitality’s payout ratio is 26.67%.

RCI Hospitality Company Profile

RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc operates as a diversified hospitality and entertainment company focused on the ownership and operation of adult nightclubs and themed sports bars throughout the United States and select international markets. The company’s U.S. Nightclub segment includes venues branded as Rick’s Cabaret, Club Onyx and various other upscale adult entertainment clubs, offering private dance experiences, VIP services and live performances. Its Restaurant & Bar segment operates Bombshells, a brunch-themed sports bar chain featuring chef-driven menus, craft cocktails and game-day viewing in a military-inspired setting.

In addition to its brick-and-mortar venues, RCI Hospitality deploys proprietary digital platforms for talent recruitment, training and scheduling, helping to streamline operations and drive customer engagement.