Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) Given New C$148.27 Price Target at Scotiabank

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) had its price target boosted by Scotiabank from C$146.00 to C$148.27 in a research report released on Monday, BayStreet.CA reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Loblaw Companies from C$130.00 to C$145.00 in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. TD Securities raised their price objective on Loblaw Companies from C$150.00 to C$160.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. CIBC dropped their price objective on Loblaw Companies from C$150.00 to C$149.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. National Bankshares raised their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$153.00 to C$156.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Desjardins raised their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$133.00 to C$148.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of C$154.04.

Loblaw Companies Stock Up 1.6 %

Loblaw Companies stock opened at C$150.58 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 156.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of C$146.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$131.92. The stock has a market capitalization of C$46.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.10, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.12. Loblaw Companies has a twelve month low of C$110.52 and a twelve month high of C$154.70.

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported C$2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C$1.92 by C$0.08. The business had revenue of C$14.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$14.58 billion. Loblaw Companies had a return on equity of 18.96% and a net margin of 3.53%. As a group, research analysts expect that Loblaw Companies will post 8.4881297 earnings per share for the current year.

Loblaw Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a $0.446 dividend. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Loblaw Companies’s payout ratio is currently 27.30%.

Insider Activity at Loblaw Companies

In related news, Senior Officer Frank Gambioli sold 4,603 shares of Loblaw Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$144.00, for a total value of C$662,832.00. In other Loblaw Companies news, Senior Officer Jeffrey Francis Leger sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$147.50, for a total transaction of C$1,475,000.00. Also, Senior Officer Frank Gambioli sold 4,603 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$144.00, for a total value of C$662,832.00. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,495 shares of company stock worth $10,547,163. 52.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Loblaw Companies

Loblaw Companies Limited, a food and pharmacy company, provides grocery, pharmacy and healthcare services, health and beauty products, apparels, general merchandise, financial services, and wireless mobile products and services in Canada. It operates in two segments, Retail and Financial Services. The Retail segment operates corporate and franchise-owned retail food, and associate-owned drug stores.