Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Trading Down 4.3% – Should You Sell?

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK)’s stock price was down 4.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $35.88 and last traded at $36.79. Approximately 755,839 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 1,732,607 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ARMK shares. StockNews.com lowered Aramark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Aramark from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Aramark from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Aramark from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Aramark from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Aramark Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $38.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.39 and a beta of 1.64.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Aramark had a net margin of 1.51% and a return on equity of 14.06%. The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Aramark will post 1.93 EPS for the current year.

Aramark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.105 per share. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. This is an increase from Aramark’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Aramark’s payout ratio is 42.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aramark

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ARMK. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Aramark by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 53,654 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Aramark by 45.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 988 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 100.3% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cadent Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Aramark by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cadent Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period.

About Aramark

Aramark provides food and facilities services to education, healthcare, business and industry, sports, leisure, and corrections clients in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Food and Support Services United States, and Food and Support Services International. The company offers food-related managed services, including dining, catering, food service management, and convenience-oriented retail services; non-clinical food and food-related support services, such as patient food and nutrition, retail food, environmental services, and procurement services; and plant operations and maintenance, custodial/housekeeping, energy management, grounds keeping, and capital project management services.