Dave & Buster’s Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Inc (NASDAQ:PLAY) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $16.19, but opened at $18.53. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment shares last traded at $17.09, with a volume of 508,061 shares changing hands.

The restaurant operator reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment had a return on equity of 44.22% and a net margin of 3.88%. The business had revenue of $534.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $548.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 10.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on PLAY. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $33.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $27.00 to $21.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $51.00 to $47.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $59.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Centiva Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the 3rd quarter valued at about $328,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 156,900 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,580,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 1,100.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 424,967 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $12,405,000 after purchasing an additional 389,577 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 81.3% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.45% of the company’s stock.

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.38, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $650.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.23 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $21.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.15.

About Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc owns and operates entertainment and dining venues for adults and families. Its venues offer a menu of entrees and appetizers, as well as a selection of non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages; and an assortment of entertainment attractions centered on playing games and watching live sports, and other televised events.