Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. $ASO Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 320,976 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,879 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.48% of Academy Sports and Outdoors worth $16,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Academy Sports and Outdoors by 214.6% during the second quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 689 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 32.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 89.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors by 15.9% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in Academy Sports and Outdoors during the first quarter valued at about $128,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ASO. Truist Financial set a $59.00 price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Academy Sports and Outdoors from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Academy Sports and Outdoors in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.89.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:ASO opened at $58.37 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $54.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.67, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.34 and a 1-year high of $60.32.

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. Academy Sports and Outdoors had a return on equity of 18.24% and a net margin of 6.27%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. Academy Sports and Outdoors has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.650-6.150 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 18th were given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 18th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Academy Sports and Outdoors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.51%.

Insider Activity at Academy Sports and Outdoors

In other news, Director Brian T. Marley sold 17,071 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.31, for a total transaction of $944,197.01. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 42,607 shares in the company, valued at $2,356,593.17. The trade was a 28.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Academy Sports and Outdoors Company Profile

Academy Sports and Outdoors is a leading specialty retailer of sporting goods and outdoor gear, operating more than 260 stores across the United States. Headquartered in Katy, Texas, the company offers a broad assortment of merchandise spanning athletic footwear and apparel, team sports equipment, camping and outdoor recreation products, hunting and fishing supplies, and fitness accessories. In addition to its brick-and-mortar footprint, Academy serves customers through its e-commerce platform, offering online ordering, in-store pickup, and home delivery options.

The company’s product portfolio includes seasonal and year-round categories designed to meet the needs of both casual enthusiasts and serious athletes.