Loblaw Companies Limited (TSE:L) Receives C$69.25 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Loblaw Companies Limited (TSE:L) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$69.25.

A number of research firms have issued reports on L. Scotia reduced their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$70.00 to C$64.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Scotiabank lowered Loblaw Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a C$70.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Desjardins raised their target price on Loblaw Companies from C$67.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Loblaw Companies from C$63.00 to C$68.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, TD Securities raised their target price on Loblaw Companies from C$65.00 to C$75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd.

Loblaw Companies Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of TSE:L opened at C$63.38 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 153.41. The business has a fifty day moving average of C$62.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$63.00. The stock has a market cap of C$73.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.56, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.15. Loblaw Companies has a 52-week low of C$52.92 and a 52-week high of C$69.59.

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.52 earnings per share for the quarter. Loblaw Companies had a return on equity of 24.88% and a net margin of 4.29%.The business had revenue of C$14.48 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts expect that Loblaw Companies will post 9.1225541 earnings per share for the current year.

Loblaw Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a $0.1552 dividend. This is an increase from Loblaw Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Loblaw Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.53%.

Insider Activity at Loblaw Companies

In other Loblaw Companies news, Director Nicholas Henn sold 10,000 shares of Loblaw Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$67.00, for a total value of C$670,000.00. Also, insider Melanie Singh sold 4,820 shares of Loblaw Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$66.72, for a total value of C$321,590.40. Company insiders own 53.77% of the company’s stock.

Loblaw Companies Company Profile

Loblaw is one of Canada’s largest grocery, pharmacy, and general merchandise retailers, operating the most expansive store footprint in Ontario and maintaining sizable presences in provinces like Quebec and British Columbia. Key grocery banners include Loblaw, No Frills, and Maxi, while its pharmaceutical operations are the product of its 2014 acquisition of Shoppers Drug Mart. The firm carries a robust private-label assortment, with top sellers like President’s Choice and No Name. In addition to its retail operations, Loblaw oversees a financial-services business, which provides credit card services and guaranteed investment certificates, and also operates its PC Optimum loyalty program.