Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) Shares Acquired by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 908,922 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 70,641 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.34% of Aramark worth $33,912,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ARMK. Huntington National Bank grew 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Aramark by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 988 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Aramark by 75.2% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in Aramark by 167.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Aramark during the 4th quarter valued at $83,000.

Aramark Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of ARMK opened at $35.73 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.13 and a beta of 1.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.08. Aramark has a twelve month low of $29.82 and a twelve month high of $42.49.

Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. Aramark had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 1.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.41 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Aramark will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Aramark Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from Aramark’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Aramark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Aramark from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Aramark from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $47.00 target price on shares of Aramark in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup started coverage on Aramark in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Aramark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Aramark presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.42.

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.