Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Escalade (NASDAQ:ESCA) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Escalade from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated 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 given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Escalade Stock Down 0.9%

Escalade stock opened at $17.55 on Friday. Escalade has a 12 month low of $11.41 and a 12 month high of $18.40. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.37. The company has a current ratio of 4.28, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market cap of $240.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.73 and a beta of 0.70.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Escalade

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Minerva Advisors LLC raised its stake in Escalade by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Minerva Advisors LLC now owns 567,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,657,000 after acquiring an additional 17,429 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Escalade by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 221,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,995,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Escalade by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 140,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,894,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Escalade by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 41,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Escalade by 120.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 27,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $351,000 after buying an additional 15,231 shares in the last quarter. 65.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Escalade Company Profile

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.