Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Loblaw Companies Limited (TSE:L) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$63.48 and traded as high as C$65.44. Loblaw Companies shares last traded at C$64.97, with a volume of 846,945 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

L has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotia dropped their target price 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 report on Thursday, May 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$75.00 to C$69.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Loblaw Companies from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from C$68.00 to C$70.00 in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Scotiabank cut Loblaw Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a C$70.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$69.50.

Loblaw Companies Stock Up 1.0%

The business’s 50-day moving average is C$63.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$63.48. The firm has a market capitalization of C$75.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 153.41, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Loblaw Companies had a net margin of 4.29% and a return on equity of 24.88%. The firm had revenue of C$14.48 billion during the quarter. On average, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st were given a dividend of $0.1552 per share. This is a positive change 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 was Monday, June 15th. Loblaw Companies’s payout ratio is 24.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Loblaw Companies

In other news, Director Nicholas Henn sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$67.00, for a total value of C$670,000.00. Also, insider Melanie Singh sold 4,820 shares of the company’s 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 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.