Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $42.09 and last traded at $41.99, with a volume of 59922 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $41.86.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ARMK shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Aramark from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Aramark from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Aramark from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $42.50 in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Aramark from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Aramark from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.23.

Aramark Stock Down 3.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.69. The stock has a market cap of $10.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.65 and a beta of 1.62.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 11th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.46 billion. Aramark had a net margin of 1.51% and a return on equity of 14.06%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Aramark will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aramark Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.001 per share. This represents a $0.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.01%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Aramark’s payout ratio is currently 38.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aramark

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in Aramark by 100.3% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 681 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Aramark during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Aramark by 360.1% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 605 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Aramark in the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aramark by 319.3% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares in the last quarter.

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.