Insider Selling: Metro (TSE:MRU) Insider Sells C$236,777.50 in Stock

Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU) insider Simon Rivet sold 2,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$89.35, for a total value of C$236,777.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 20,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,807,103.75. This trade represents a 11.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock.

Metro Price Performance

TSE MRU opened at C$88.16 on Friday. Metro Inc. has a 12 month low of C$86.63 and a 12 month high of C$101.30. The stock has a market cap of C$18.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.94, a PEG ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.11. The company’s 50 day moving average is C$90.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$91.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 71.09.

Metro (TSE:MRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported C$1.24 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$6.97 billion during the quarter. Metro had a net margin of 4.00% and a return on equity of 12.87%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Metro Inc. will post 4.8188614 earnings per share for the current year.

Metro Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 22nd will be issued a $0.4075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Metro’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Securities raised Metro to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Metro from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from C$105.00 to C$95.00 in a research note on Monday, July 20th. National Bank Financial cut their target price on Metro from C$105.00 to C$102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. TD lifted their target price on Metro from C$106.00 to C$108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Metro from C$111.00 to C$110.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of C$102.33.

Metro Company Profile

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.