Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Trims Stake in Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund reduced its position in shares of Upbound Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPBD) by 13.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,520 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,799 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Upbound Group were worth $867,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in UPBD. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new position in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Bramshill Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Finally, CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upbound Group during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. 90.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Upbound Group Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of UPBD opened at $32.41 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 3.12. Upbound Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.00 and a fifty-two week high of $36.17. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.85.

Upbound Group (NASDAQ:UPBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $994.27 million. Upbound Group had a negative net margin of 0.13% and a positive return on equity of 32.65%. The business’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.86 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Upbound Group, Inc. will post 3.76 EPS for the current year.

Upbound Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 3rd were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.57%. Upbound Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,233.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPBD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens raised shares of Upbound Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Upbound Group in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Upbound Group from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Upbound Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $38.17.

Insider Transactions at Upbound Group

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $30.68 per share, for a total transaction of $30,403.88. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 83,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,673.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 991 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.68 per share, for a total transaction of $30,403.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 83,138 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,673.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Anthony J. Blasquez sold 12,485 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.18, for a total transaction of $414,252.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,956,525.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Upbound Group Company Profile

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.