ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO) Shares Gap Up Following Insider Buying Activity

ARKO Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $4.99, but opened at $5.20. ARKO shares last traded at $5.2340, with a volume of 224,088 shares trading hands.

Specifically, CFO Charles Galagher Jeff bought 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.07 per share, with a total value of $202,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $202,800. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of ARKO in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.00.

ARKO Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.02, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $5.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.98. The firm has a market cap of $578.62 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.36 and a beta of 0.83.

ARKO (NASDAQ:ARKO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. ARKO had a return on equity of 8.58% and a net margin of 0.30%. On average, analysts expect that ARKO Corp. will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ARKO Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. ARKO’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.71%.

Institutional Trading of ARKO

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in ARKO in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in ARKO during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in ARKO by 193.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 8,115 shares during the period. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. acquired a new position in shares of ARKO in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ARKO in the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. 78.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ARKO Company Profile

ARKO Corp (NASDAQ: ARKO) is a downstream energy and convenience retail company based in Matthews, North Carolina. The company’s core operations encompass fuel supply, distribution and retailing through a network of terminals, independent dealer locations and company-operated convenience stores. ARKO’s fuel offerings include branded and unbranded gasoline and diesel, as well as lubricants and other petroleum products marketed under various regional and private labels.

In its retail segment, ARKO operates a portfolio of convenience stores under the Kangaroo Express banner, serving on-site customers with fuel, grab-and-go food items, beverages and everyday household essentials.