Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) Share Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Loblaw Companies Limited (TSE:L) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$63.23 and traded as high as C$64.40. Loblaw Companies shares last traded at C$64.18, with a volume of 944,891 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on L shares. Scotia decreased their price target on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$70.00 to C$64.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Scotiabank lowered shares of Loblaw Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a C$70.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reduced their target price on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$75.00 to C$69.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Loblaw Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$69.25.

Loblaw Companies Stock Up 1.2%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of C$62.99 and a 200-day moving average of C$63.23. 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 firm has a market cap of C$74.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.13.

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

Loblaw Companies Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.