Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Trading 3.5% Higher – Here’s Why

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK)’s stock price traded up 3.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $37.36 and last traded at $37.17. 225,306 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 2,021,818 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.93.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ARMK shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Aramark from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Aramark from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Aramark from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Aramark from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Aramark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Aramark has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.42.

Aramark Stock Down 0.4 %

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’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.73 billion, a PE ratio of 28.91 and a beta of 1.64.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. Aramark had a net margin of 1.94% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The business had revenue of $4.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.41 earnings per share. Aramark’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Aramark will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aramark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.105 per share. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. This is a positive change from Aramark’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Aramark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.07%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aramark

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Aramark during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,874,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Aramark by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 891,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,268,000 after acquiring an additional 315,401 shares during the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new position in Aramark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $440,000. Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Aramark by 28.9% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 9,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $359,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sone Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Aramark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $838,000.

About Aramark

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.