Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $40.17.

UPBD has been the topic of a number of research reports. BTIG Research began coverage on Upbound Group in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Upbound Group in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock.

Upbound Group Stock Performance

Shares of UPBD opened at $30.02 on Tuesday. Upbound Group has a 12 month low of $25.00 and a 12 month high of $36.17. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.75. The company has a current ratio of 3.49, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The company has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -65.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 2.02.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.02. Upbound Group had a negative net margin of 0.61% and a positive return on equity of 33.40%. The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.83 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Upbound Group will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio is -321.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upbound Group

In other Upbound Group news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.68 per share, with a total value of $30,403.88. Following the purchase, the director now owns 83,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,550,673.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upbound Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPBD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Upbound Group by 3.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,005,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,453,000 after purchasing an additional 209,422 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,148,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,981,000 after acquiring an additional 62,832 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted its holdings in Upbound Group by 43.0% during the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,693,695 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,635,000 after buying an additional 509,343 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter worth $21,549,000. Finally, Huber Capital Management LLC increased its position in Upbound Group by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. Huber Capital Management LLC now owns 492,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,330,000 after purchasing an additional 99,004 shares during the period. 90.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Upbound Group

Upbound Group, Inc leases household durable goods to customers on a lease-to-own basis in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Rent-A-Center, Acima, Mexico, and Franchising. The company's brands, such as Rent-A-Center and Acima that facilitate consumer transactions across a range of store-based and virtual channels.