Metro (TSE:MRU) Upgraded by TD Securities to “Strong-Buy” Rating

TD Securities upgraded shares of Metro (TSE:MRU) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. National Bank Financial set a C$105.00 target price on Metro and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Metro from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from C$105.00 to C$95.00 in a report on Monday, July 20th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce dropped their target price on Metro from C$101.00 to C$97.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Scotia reduced their price target on Metro from C$103.00 to C$96.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Desjardins decreased their price target on shares of Metro from C$99.00 to C$97.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of C$102.38.

Metro Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of TSE:MRU opened at C$95.36 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of C$20.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.16. Metro has a 12 month low of C$86.63 and a 12 month high of C$107.78. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is C$91.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$93.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.30.

Metro Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were issued a $0.4075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Metro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.36%.

About Metro

With annual sales of more than $22 billion, METRO Inc is a food and pharmacy leader in Québec and Ontario, providing employment to more than 97,000 people. Its purpose is to Nourish the health and well-being of our communities. As a retailer, franchisor, distributor, manufacturer, and provider of eCommerce services, the company operates or services a network of some 1,000 food stores under several banners including Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, Food Basics, Adonis and Première Moisson, and some 640 pharmacies primarily under the Jean Coutu, Brunet, Metro Pharmacy and Food Basics Pharmacy banners.