Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Stock Price Down 24.4% – Here’s Why

Shares of Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) dropped 24.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 2,218 ($29.35) and last traded at GBX 2,327.73 ($30.81). Approximately 5,287,830 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 115% from the average daily volume of 2,465,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,078 ($40.74).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BNZL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup upgraded Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Shore Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued an “underperform” rating and set a GBX 2,800 ($37.06) price target on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of GBX 3,375 ($44.67).

Bunzl Trading Down 24.4 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is GBX 3,114.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 3,338.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of £7.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.09, a PEG ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.57) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Bunzl had a return on equity of 16.82% and a net margin of 4.20%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Bunzl plc will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of GBX 53.80 ($0.71) per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $20.10. This represents a yield of 1.8%. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio is 48.39%.

Insider Transactions at Bunzl

In other news, insider Frank van Zanten bought 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 3,037 ($40.19) per share, for a total transaction of £121,480 ($160,772.90). Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

About Bunzl

Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, cleaning and hygiene supplies, and personal protection equipment to grocery stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores.