Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,840,000 shares, a growth of 14.5% from the March 15th total of 5,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,490,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARMK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Aramark in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Aramark in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Aramark from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Aramark from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aramark has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.04.

Aramark Stock Performance

Shares of ARMK traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $31.19. 1,537,691 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,483,609. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.19 billion, a PE ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.48. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.92. Aramark has a 52-week low of $23.95 and a 52-week high of $33.04.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.29 billion. Aramark had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 13.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Aramark will post 1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Aramark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.095 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 13th. This represents a $0.38 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Aramark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aramark

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Aramark during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Aramark by 148.4% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new position in Aramark in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. S.A. Mason LLC purchased a new position in Aramark in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Aramark by 2,269.4% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,112 shares during the last quarter.

Aramark Company Profile

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.