Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also commented on ESCA. Wall Street Zen upgraded Escalade from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Escalade in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Escalade has an average rating of “Buy”.

Escalade Price Performance

ESCA opened at $15.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 4.28 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.50 million, a P/E ratio of 15.15 and a beta of 0.70. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.09. Escalade has a one year low of $11.41 and a one year high of $16.99.

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 27th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $62.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.55 million. Escalade had a return on equity of 8.03% and a net margin of 5.70%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Escalade will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Escalade Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th will be given a $0.1525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. This represents a $0.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. This is a positive change from Escalade’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Escalade’s dividend payout ratio is 60.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Richard Fenton Baalmann, Jr. sold 5,490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.00, for a total transaction of $71,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 100,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,305,122. The trade was a 5.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 28.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Escalade

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Escalade by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 221,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,096,000 after buying an additional 4,455 shares in the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey acquired a new position in Escalade in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Escalade in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Escalade by 439.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,950 shares during the period. Finally, Certior Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Escalade during the 3rd quarter valued at about $141,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.22% of the company’s stock.

About Escalade

Escalade, Inc is a U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of recreational equipment and specialty products for both consumer and commercial markets. Headquartered in Evansville, Indiana, the company operates through two principal business segments: Sporting Goods and Commercial Products. The Sporting Goods segment encompasses a diverse range of products such as hockey and lacrosse goal assemblies, fitness accessories, archery and hunting gear, and table tennis equipment. The Commercial Products segment focuses on seating solutions for restaurants, hospitality venues and other public spaces under the Top Seat brand, as well as storage, display products and industrial carts.

Within Sporting Goods, Escalade markets its products under proprietary brands including Bear® Archery, Gene St.