Accel Entertainment (NYSE:ACEL) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Accel Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:ACEL)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $11.07, but opened at $13.00. Accel Entertainment shares last traded at $12.95, with a volume of 168,126 shares traded.

The company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $341.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $335.66 million. Accel Entertainment had a return on equity of 27.49% and a net margin of 3.87%.

Key Stories Impacting Accel Entertainment

Here are the key news stories impacting Accel Entertainment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — ACEL reported $0.19 EPS vs. $0.15 consensus and revenue of $341.5M vs. $335.7M, marking a record Q4 and giving management momentum to talk about cost and margin initiatives. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Chicago VGT market entry and margin-expansion guidance — Management highlighted entry into the Chicago video gaming terminal (VGT) market and said it expects margin expansion from operational improvements and scale, a potential multi-quarter earnings lever. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price-target increase (Citizens JMP) — Citizens JMP raised its target to $14 and set a “market outperform” rating, signaling analyst confidence in upside vs. current levels. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $14 but kept a “hold” rating — modestly supportive for the stock but not an upgrade to a buy. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials posted — The company released its Q4 earnings presentation and the full call transcript (useful for details on guidance, capital allocation and the Chicago rollout). Presentation Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Sell pressure despite the beat — Shares fell on the news, likely due to profit-taking after the run, a high intraday volume spike vs. average, and lingering investor concerns: elevated leverage (debt/equity ~2.1), modest net margins (~3.9%), and relatively conservative near-term EPS expectations—factors that can temper how strongly the market rewards a single-quarter beat.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ACEL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citizens Jmp raised their price objective on shares of Accel Entertainment from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial increased their price target on Accel Entertainment from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Accel Entertainment in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on Accel Entertainment in a research report on Friday, December 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accel Entertainment news, insider Derek Harmer sold 5,000 shares of Accel Entertainment stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.50, for a total value of $57,500.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 199,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,299,045.50. The trade was a 2.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David W. Ruttenberg sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.04, for a total transaction of $276,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 198,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,187,410.40. This trade represents a 11.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 115,000 shares of company stock worth $1,289,100. 18.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Accel Entertainment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACEL. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in Accel Entertainment by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 11,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Accel Entertainment by 3.9% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Accel Entertainment by 8.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 21,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,694 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management increased its position in Accel Entertainment by 9.4% in the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 23,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Accel Entertainment by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 29,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 2,110 shares in the last quarter. 55.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Accel Entertainment Stock Down 6.4%

The firm has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 2.50.

Accel Entertainment Company Profile

Accel Entertainment, Inc is a Chicago-based gaming and entertainment company specializing in the provision of regulated electronic gaming terminals and related management services to licensed establishments across the United States. The company’s core offerings include video gaming terminals (VGTs), digital payment solutions, player loyalty programs and compliance support, all designed to enhance customer engagement and operational efficiency for bars, restaurants, truck stops and convenience stores.

Founded in 2005, Accel Entertainment has built a network that spans multiple states, including Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Iowa.