Insider Selling: Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) Director Sells C$670,000.00 in Stock

Loblaw Companies Limited (TSE:L) Director Nicholas Henn sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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.

Loblaw Companies Stock Performance

Shares of L stock opened at C$64.88 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is C$62.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$62.95. 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$75.51 billion, a PE ratio of 28.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.15. Loblaw Companies Limited has a 12 month low of C$52.92 and a 12 month high of C$69.59.

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.52 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$14.48 billion for the quarter. Loblaw Companies had a net margin of 4.29% and a return on equity of 24.88%. Equities research analysts expect that Loblaw Companies Limited will post 9.1225541 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Loblaw Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a $0.1552 dividend. This is a boost from Loblaw Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Loblaw Companies’s payout ratio is presently 24.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on L shares. 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. Scotia cut their price objective on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$70.00 to C$64.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$63.00 to C$68.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Desjardins boosted their price objective on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$67.00 to C$70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut their price objective on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$75.00 to C$69.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Loblaw Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$69.25.

About Loblaw Companies

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.