Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Inc (NASDAQ:PLAY) Short Interest Up 26.7% in October

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Inc (NASDAQ:PLAY) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,630,000 shares, a growth of 26.7% from the September 30th total of 6,020,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,310,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.8 days. Approximately 19.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

In other news, CEO Christopher Daniel Morris purchased 14,912 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $33.67 per share, for a total transaction of $502,087.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 83,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,823,128.49. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 1,931.4% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 38,698 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after buying an additional 36,793 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its stake in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 150.1% in the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 42,279 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,647,000 after purchasing an additional 25,376 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment during the first quarter worth $1,417,000. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the first quarter valued at $1,803,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the first quarter valued at about $2,401,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.45% of the company’s stock.

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Stock Performance

PLAY traded down $0.31 on Wednesday, hitting $38.70. 677,180 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,263,239. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $33.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.54. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment has a 52 week low of $29.31 and a 52 week high of $69.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a PE ratio of 14.07 and a beta of 2.15.

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 10th. The restaurant operator reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $557.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $560.65 million. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment had a net margin of 5.10% and a return on equity of 51.75%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Dave & Buster’s Entertainment will post 2.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PLAY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $64.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $65.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $63.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.57.

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.