Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) Rating Lowered to “Sector Perform” at Scotiabank

Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) was downgraded by research analysts at Scotiabank from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, BayStreet reports. They presently have a C$33.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of C$30.00. Scotiabank‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 22.09% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on MFI. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce set a C$36.00 price target on shares of Maple Leaf Foods and gave the company an “outperformer” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Stifel Nicolaus set a C$36.00 price objective on Maple Leaf Foods and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. TD reduced their price objective on Maple Leaf Foods from C$36.00 to C$35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Ventum Capital lowered their target price on Maple Leaf Foods from C$37.00 to C$35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Ventum Financial lowered their target price on Maple Leaf Foods from C$39.00 to C$37.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of C$34.92.

Maple Leaf Foods Stock Down 0.9%

MFI traded down C$0.25 on Thursday, reaching C$27.03. 250,984 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 275,544. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is C$26.02 and its 200-day moving average price is C$28.07. Maple Leaf Foods has a 52-week low of C$23.35 and a 52-week high of C$31.87. The company has a market cap of C$3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.64, a PEG ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 97.47, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported C$0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Maple Leaf Foods had a net margin of 13.08% and a return on equity of 36.83%. The company had revenue of C$1.03 billion during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Maple Leaf Foods will post 1.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Maple Leaf Foods

In other Maple Leaf Foods news, Director Andrew Gordon Macdonald bought 10,000 shares of Maple Leaf Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of C$26.78 per share, for a total transaction of C$267,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 72,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$1,933,516. The trade was a 16.08% increase in their ownership of the stock. 39.87% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Maple Leaf Foods

Maple Leaf Foods (TSX: MFI) is a purpose-driven, protein-focused, brand-led consumer packaged goods company headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario. It proudly produces responsibly made, delicious food under powerhouse brands that include Maple Leaf, Maple Leaf Prime, Maple Leaf Natural Selections, Maple Leaf Mighty Protein, Musafir, Schneiders, Mina Halal, Greenfield Natural Meat Co, LightLife, Field Roast, and Yves Veggie Cuisine. Committed to Raising the Good in Food and bringing customers protein with purpose, Maple Leaf Foods delivers shared value for all its stakeholders by leading the way in safety and sustainability, building loved brands, operating with excellence, developing extraordinary talent, and broadening its impact through innovation and geographic reach.