Squarepoint Ops LLC Makes New Investment in Upbound Group, Inc. $UPBD

Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in shares of Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 58,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,463,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Upbound Group by 414.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 179.4% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 2,512 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Upbound Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $95,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Upbound Group by 47.5% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 1,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Upbound Group during the second quarter worth $199,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.30% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 1,951 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.27 per share, for a total transaction of $43,448.77. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 90,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,025,790.55. This represents a 2.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Upbound Group in a research report on Monday. BTIG Research dropped their target price on shares of Upbound Group from $40.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Upbound Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Zacks Research lowered Upbound Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on Upbound Group from $36.00 to $31.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Upbound Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.50.

Upbound Group Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of UPBD opened at $17.32 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.94 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 3.16. Upbound Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $15.82 and a 52 week high of $30.66. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.67.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. Upbound Group had a return on equity of 36.08% and a net margin of 1.85%.The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Upbound Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.050-4.150 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 17th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 17th. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 107.59%.

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. It offers furniture comprising mattresses, tires, consumer electronics, appliances, tools, handbags, computers, smartphones, and accessories.