Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Shares Down 24.4% – Should You Sell?

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) was down 24.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as GBX 2,218 ($29.43) and last traded at GBX 2,327.73 ($30.88). Approximately 5,287,830 shares traded hands 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 ($40.84).

Analyst Ratings Changes

BNZL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Shore Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Monday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bunzl presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of GBX 3,375 ($44.78).

Bunzl Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 3,071.17 and a 200-day moving average price of GBX 3,319.24. The firm has a market cap of £7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.89, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.58) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Bunzl had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 16.82%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bunzl plc will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a GBX 53.80 ($0.71) dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $20.10. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bunzl news, insider Frank van Zanten purchased 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 3,037 ($40.29) per share, for a total transaction of £121,480 ($161,178.19). Also, insider Richard Howes purchased 8,479 shares of Bunzl stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 2,338 ($31.02) per share, for a total transaction of £198,239.02 ($263,021.12). 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Bunzl Company Profile

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.