StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Ark Restaurants (NASDAQ:ARKR)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Ark Restaurants (NASDAQ:ARKR) in a research note released on Tuesday morning. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Separately, TheStreet upgraded shares of Ark Restaurants from a d+ rating to a c rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th.

Ark Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARKR opened at $14.87 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $14.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.43. The company has a market cap of $53.53 million, a PE ratio of -7.36 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Ark Restaurants has a twelve month low of $10.27 and a twelve month high of $18.75.

Ark Restaurants (NASDAQ:ARKR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 13th. The restaurant operator reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $42.26 million for the quarter. Ark Restaurants had a positive return on equity of 1.19% and a negative net margin of 3.91%.

Ark Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.188 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.06%. Ark Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently -37.13%.

Insider Transactions at Ark Restaurants

In other news, major shareholder Thomas A. Satterfield, Jr. acquired 6,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $13.99 per share, for a total transaction of $85,339.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 52,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $735,874. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 37.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Ark Restaurants stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ark Restaurants Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKR) by 7.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,544 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,225 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.49% of Ark Restaurants worth $246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.95% of the company’s stock.

About Ark Restaurants

Ark Restaurants Corp., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates restaurants and bars in the United States. It operates restaurants in New York City; Washington, DC; Las Vegas, Nevada; Atlantic City, New Jersey; Florida; and Alabama, as well as fast food concepts and catering operations. The company was incorporated in 1983 and is based in New York, New York.