Alpine Associates Management Inc. Buys Shares of 839,571 The Aaron’s Company, Inc. (NYSE:AAN)

Alpine Associates Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of The Aaron’s Company, Inc. (NYSE:AAN) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 839,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,379,000. Alpine Associates Management Inc. owned approximately 2.66% of Aaron’s as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Aaron’s during the second quarter worth about $41,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Aaron’s by 314.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 3,870 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of Aaron’s by 239.5% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 8,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 5,915 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aaron’s during the fourth quarter worth about $123,000. Finally, EMC Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Aaron’s by 172.8% during the first quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 12,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 7,735 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

Aaron’s Stock Performance

Shares of AAN stock opened at $10.04 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.02. The Aaron’s Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.62 and a fifty-two week high of $11.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $10.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.59. The company has a market capitalization of $316.46 million, a P/E ratio of -12.71 and a beta of 1.43.

Aaron’s (NYSE:AAN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.10). Aaron’s had a negative net margin of 2.06% and a negative return on equity of 2.08%. The company had revenue of $503.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $513.91 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.39 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Aaron’s Company, Inc. will post -0.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Aaron’s Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.98%. Aaron’s’s payout ratio is currently -63.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Aaron’s from $8.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Aaron’s from $8.00 to $10.10 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Aaron’s in a research report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Aaron’s from $8.00 to $10.10 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, BTIG Research assumed coverage on Aaron’s in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.46.

Aaron’s Profile

Headquartered in Atlanta, The Aaron’s Company, Inc (NYSE: AAN) is a leading, technology-enabled, omnichannel provider of lease-purchase solutions. Aaron’s engages in direct-to-consumer sales and lease ownership of furniture, appliances, consumer electronics and accessories through its approximately 1,300 company-operated and franchised stores in 47 states and Canada, as well as its e-commerce platform, Aarons.com.