Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A) Receives C$38.71 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is C$38.71.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. National Bankshares lifted their price objective on shares of Empire from C$40.00 to C$41.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. TD Securities lifted their price target on shares of Empire from C$36.00 to C$38.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Empire from C$37.00 to C$36.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Empire from C$42.00 to C$41.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Desjardins upped their price target on Empire from C$38.00 to C$40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th.

Empire Trading Up 0.1 %

TSE EMP.A opened at C$36.50 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is C$34.28 and its 200-day moving average is C$33.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 133.75, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of C$5.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.09, a PEG ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.46. Empire has a one year low of C$31.45 and a one year high of C$40.69.

Empire Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a boost from Empire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. Empire’s dividend payout ratio is 24.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Empire

In other news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total value of C$108,960.00. In related news, Senior Officer Vivek Sood sold 4,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$36.17, for a total transaction of C$153,228.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 381 shares in the company, valued at C$13,781.91. Also, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total value of C$108,960.00. Insiders sold 14,294 shares of company stock valued at $504,880 in the last quarter. 1.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Empire

Empire Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the food retail and related real estate businesses in Canada. It operates through two segments, Food Retailing, and Investments and Other Operations. The company owns, affiliates, and franchises approximately 1,500 retail stores under various retail banners, including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, and Lawtons Drugs; and approximately 350 retail fuel locations.