Royce & Associates LP Acquires 46,800 Shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. $ASO

Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,131,420 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 46,800 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 1.84% of Academy Sports and Outdoors worth $54,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in the second quarter worth approximately $468,146,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,209,000. Fund 1 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,414,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the second quarter valued at approximately $20,434,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,427,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial upped their price target on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets set a $42.00 price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, November 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.27.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Performance

Shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $67.59. 800,387 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,383,230. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.29 and a 12 month high of $71.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.33. The company has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 1.74.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 9th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 18.36% and a net margin of 6.39%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. Academy Sports and Outdoors has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.500-6.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 6.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s payout ratio is currently 10.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other news, President Samuel Johnson sold 70,303 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.79, for a total transaction of $3,640,992.37. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 36,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,909,031.19. This trade represents a 65.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian T. Marley sold 10,432 shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.25, for a total value of $555,504.00. Following the sale, the director owned 32,607 shares in the company, valued at $1,736,322.75. The trade was a 24.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 106,315 shares of company stock worth $5,576,537. Insiders own 4.08% of the company’s stock.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Profile

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. is a sporting goods and outdoor recreation retailer that sells products through its stores and e-commerce platform. Its merchandise includes sports and fitness equipment, outdoor and camping gear, hunting and fishing supplies, apparel, footwear and recreation products. The company serves customers primarily in the southern and eastern United States through a network of retail locations. Its stores offer products for a range of sports and outdoor activities, as well as items for everyday use.