RCI Hospitality (NASDAQ:RICK) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

RCI Hospitality Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:RICK)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $52.13, but opened at $56.00. RCI Hospitality shares last traded at $59.81, with a volume of 132,458 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on RICK shares. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $98.00 price objective on shares of RCI Hospitality in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded RCI Hospitality from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday.

RCI Hospitality Stock Down 2.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $511.84 million, a PE ratio of 109.41 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company’s 50-day moving average is $48.49 and its 200 day moving average is $45.83.

RCI Hospitality Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. RCI Hospitality’s payout ratio is 87.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RCI Hospitality

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RICK. Progeny 3 Inc. boosted its holdings in RCI Hospitality by 23.5% in the second quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 460,968 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $20,080,000 after purchasing an additional 87,832 shares during the last quarter. DHK Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in RCI Hospitality in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,699,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in RCI Hospitality by 24.8% in the 2nd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 51,663 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,250,000 after purchasing an additional 10,275 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of RCI Hospitality during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of RCI Hospitality by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 60,704 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,644,000 after purchasing an additional 4,126 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.82% of the company’s stock.

About RCI Hospitality

RCI Hospitality Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the hospitality and related businesses in the United States. It operates in Nightclubs, Bombshells, and Media Group segments. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiaries own and/or operates upscale adult nightclubs serving primarily businessmen and professionals under the Rick's Cabaret, Jaguars Club, Tootsie's Cabaret, XTC Cabaret, Club Onyx, Hoops Cabaret and Sports Bar, Scarlett's Cabaret, Temptations Adult Cabaret, Foxy's Cabaret, Vivid Cabaret, Downtown Cabaret, Cabaret East, The Seville, Silver City Cabaret, and Kappa Men's Club.