Metro (TSE:MRU) Stock Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU)’s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of C$97.39 and traded as high as C$97.53. Metro shares last traded at C$97.31, with a volume of 389,685 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce decreased their target price on shares of Metro from C$105.00 to C$101.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Desjardins decreased their price objective on Metro from C$105.00 to C$99.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Metro from C$115.00 to C$110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Metro from C$112.00 to C$113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, TD Securities lowered their target price on shares of Metro from C$118.00 to C$113.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Metro has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of C$106.25.

Metro Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of C$97.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$97.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 62.29. The stock has a market capitalization of C$20.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.53, a PEG ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.13.

Metro (TSE:MRU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported C$1.16 EPS for the quarter. Metro had a return on equity of 13.80% and a net margin of 4.50%.The company had revenue of C$5.29 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Metro Inc. will post 4.8188614 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Metro news, insider Paolo Bravi sold 2,430 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$91.46, for a total value of C$222,247.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 19,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$1,804,505.80. This trade represents a 10.97% decrease in their position. Also, insider Richard Pruneau sold 2,018 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$90.87, for a total transaction of C$183,375.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 12,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,129,786.71. This represents a 13.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders have sold a total of 8,866 shares of company stock valued at $808,236 in the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Metro Company Profile

Metro is one of the largest grocery retailers in Canada. With its 2018 acquisition of Jean Coutu, it also boasts a meaningful drugstore footprint. Noteworthy grocery banners include Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, and Food Basics, while its pharmacies primarily operate under the Jean Coutu and Brunet trademarks. It utilizes an array of business models, but it most frequently acts as either a retailer, operating individual stores, or a franchiser, licensing its trademarks and supplying merchandise to franchisees.