Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) Stock Rating Upgraded by TD Cowen

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) was upgraded by TD Cowen to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Upbound Group in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Upbound Group from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Upbound Group from $36.00 to $33.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.17.

Upbound Group Stock Performance

Shares of Upbound Group stock opened at $34.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 3.66 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $1.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.72 and a beta of 2.01. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.62. Upbound Group has a fifty-two week low of $26.50 and a fifty-two week high of $38.72.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. Upbound Group had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 34.15%. Upbound Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.79 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Upbound Group will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Upbound Group

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 1,065 shares of Upbound Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $29.25 per share, with a total value of $31,151.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,234 shares in the company, valued at $2,493,094.50. This trade represents a 1.27 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upbound Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Upbound Group by 47.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Upbound Group by 268.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the second quarter worth $42,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the second quarter worth $89,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Upbound Group by 374.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 2,590 shares during the period. 90.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Upbound Group

Upbound Group, Inc leases household durable goods to customers on a lease-to-own basis in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Rent-A-Center, Acima, Mexico, and Franchising. The company's brands, such as Rent-A-Center and Acima that facilitate consumer transactions across a range of store-based and virtual channels.