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

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

ASO has been the subject of several other research reports. B. Riley reissued a buy rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Academy Sports and Outdoors has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $74.47.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Price Performance

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

Academy Sports and Outdoors Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 26th will be given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 25th. This is a boost from Academy Sports and Outdoors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s payout ratio is 6.55%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Academy Sports and Outdoors

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 124.0% during 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. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,578,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,028,000 after acquiring an additional 85,344 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,005,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,986,000 after acquiring an additional 38,395 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,655,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $175,290,000 after acquiring an additional 80,218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,089,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,878,000 after acquiring an additional 559,414 shares during the last quarter.

About Academy Sports and Outdoors

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.