Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) Shares Down 14.1% – Time to Sell?

Associated British Foods plc (LON:ABF) fell 14.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as GBX 1,843.50 and last traded at GBX 1,848.07. 8,163,347 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 9,462,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,151.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ABF. Shore Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Associated British Foods in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Associated British Foods from GBX 2,215 to GBX 2,095 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Associated British Foods to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from GBX 2,130 to GBX 2,000 in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Associated British Foods from GBX 1,830 to GBX 1,840 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of GBX 2,058.75.

Associated British Foods Trading Down 13.2%

The business’s 50-day moving average is GBX 2,149.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 2,150.33. The stock has a market capitalization of £13.21 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.88.

Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported GBX 174.90 earnings per share for the quarter. Associated British Foods had a return on equity of 13.07% and a net margin of 7.25%. On average, analysts anticipate that Associated British Foods plc will post 188.0990415 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Associated British Foods

In other news, insider George G. Weston sold 43,660 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,103, for a total value of £918,169.80. Also, insider Eoin Tonge sold 34,818 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,103, for a total value of £732,222.54. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Associated British Foods

Associated British Foods is a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group with sales of £13.9bn, 128,000 employees and operations in 53 countries across Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia.

Our purpose is to provide safe, nutritious, affordable food, and clothing that is great value for money. With the breadth of our business, our brands and global reach, ABF aims to consistently deliver value to its stakeholders.

Our business is split into five segments: Grocery; Sugar; Agriculture; Ingredients; and Retail.