Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP) Senior Officer Acquires C$59,450.00 in Stock

Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP) Senior Officer Martin Gagnon purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of C$29.73 per share, for a total transaction of C$59,450.00.

Saputo Price Performance

Shares of Saputo stock traded up C$0.05 on Wednesday, hitting C$29.78. 43,147 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 417,837. The company has a 50-day moving average price of C$30.74 and a 200 day moving average price of C$28.39. The stock has a market capitalization of C$12.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 53.17. Saputo Inc. has a 1-year low of C$25.28 and a 1-year high of C$32.15.

Saputo (TSE:SAP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 6th. The company reported C$0.37 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of C$0.37. Saputo had a return on equity of 3.72% and a net margin of 1.50%. The business had revenue of C$4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of C$4.25 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Saputo Inc. will post 1.8112058 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Saputo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. This is an increase from Saputo’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Saputo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 120.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. CIBC reduced their price target on Saputo from C$37.00 to C$35.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Desjardins upped their target price on Saputo from C$33.00 to C$35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. National Bankshares decreased their target price on Saputo from C$36.00 to C$35.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. TD Securities upped their price objective on shares of Saputo from C$36.00 to C$37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Saputo from C$34.00 to C$35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of C$35.50.

About Saputo

Saputo Inc produces, markets, and distributes dairy products in Canada, the United States, Argentina, Australia, and the United Kingdom. The company offers cheeses, including mozzarella and cheddar; specialty cheeses, such as ricotta, provolone, blue, parmesan, goat cheese, feta, romano, and havarti; fine cheeses comprising brie and camembert; and other cheeses that include brick, colby, farmer, munster, monterey jack, fresh curd, and processed cheeses.