Aramark (ARMK) – Investment Analysts’ Recent Ratings Changes

Aramark (NYSE: ARMK) has recently received a number of price target changes and ratings updates:

• 8/7/2024 – Aramark had its price target raised by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $33.00 to $36.00. They now have a “sector perform” rating on the stock.
• 8/7/2024 – Aramark had its price target raised by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $35.00 to $39.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
• 8/7/2024 – Aramark had its price target raised by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $37.00 to $38.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
• 8/7/2024 – Aramark was downgraded by analysts at Truist Financial Co. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating.
• 8/7/2024 – Aramark had its price target raised by analysts at Bank of America Co. from $36.00 to $39.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
• 8/7/2024 – Aramark was upgraded by analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They now have a $39.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $36.00.

Aramark Stock Performance

ARMK traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $35.57. 1,448,787 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,298,997. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Aramark has a 12 month low of $23.95 and a 12 month high of $36.55. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.45. The stock has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.59.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. Aramark had a return on equity of 13.82% and a net margin of 3.43%. Aramark’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Aramark will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Aramark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th will be paid a $0.095 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 19th. This represents a $0.38 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Aramark’s payout ratio is currently 15.97%.

Institutional Trading of Aramark

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Public Sector Pension Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Aramark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,477,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Aramark in the fourth quarter worth approximately $68,309,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Aramark by 822.3% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,677,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,073,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495,737 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Aramark by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,983,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,037,000 after buying an additional 1,081,358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Aramark by 182.0% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,443,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,435,000 after buying an additional 931,904 shares during the period.

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.