Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) Stock: Insider Jeffrey Brown Buys 17,645 Shares

Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) Director Jeffrey Brown acquired 17,645 shares of Upbound Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $22.67 per share, for a total transaction of $400,012.15. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 116,543 shares in the company, valued at $2,642,029.81. This trade represents a 17.84% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Upbound Group Trading Up 3.1%

NASDAQ UPBD opened at $24.88 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $17.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.96. Upbound Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $14.98 and a 12 month high of $25.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 3.17 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.80.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.10. Upbound Group had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 33.81%. The company had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. Upbound Group’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 6th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 6th. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.11%.

More Upbound Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Upbound Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Seven directors and executives, including CEO Fahmi Karam, bought a combined approximately $1.34 million of UPBD shares on November 2–3, at prices of $22.61–$23.00. The breadth and size of the purchases may bolster investor sentiment, although insider buying does not guarantee future results. CEO SEC filing
• Positive Sentiment: In its latest reported quarter, Upbound earned $1.01 per share, topping the $0.91 analyst consensus, and generated $1.15 billion in revenue, above expectations.
• Neutral Sentiment: UPBD shares have recently moved toward their 12-month high, but the provided reports do not establish that insider purchases caused the move.
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly revenue declined 1.3% year over year, tempering the earnings beat and suggesting growth remains a concern.

Institutional Trading of Upbound Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Upbound Group by 299.3% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Upbound Group by 74.5% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,302 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in Upbound Group during the 2nd quarter worth $50,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Upbound Group by 49.9% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on UPBD shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Upbound Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Upbound Group from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 30th. BTIG Research cut Upbound Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $28.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research upgraded Upbound Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Upbound Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Upbound Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.00.

About Upbound Group

Upbound Group, Inc is a provider of consumer leasing and retail solutions, operating primarily through its Rent-A-Center and Acima brands. The company enables customers to obtain merchandise through flexible lease-to-own agreements and related payment options, serving consumers who may prefer alternatives to traditional retail financing.

Its Rent-A-Center business operates company-owned and franchised locations, as well as digital channels, offering furniture, appliances, electronics, computers, smartphones and other household goods.