Insider Selling: Metro (TSE:MRU) Insider Sells C$86,659.20 in Stock

Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU) insider Alain Tadros sold 960 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$90.27, for a total value of C$86,659.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$537,287.04. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock.

Metro Stock Performance

Shares of Metro stock opened at C$88.64 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is C$90.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$92.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 71.09. Metro Inc. has a 12 month low of C$86.63 and a 12 month high of C$101.30. The firm has a market capitalization of C$18.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.11.

Metro (TSE:MRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported C$1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of C$6.97 billion during the quarter. Metro had a return on equity of 12.87% and a net margin of 4.00%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Metro Inc. will post 4.8188614 EPS for the current year.

Metro Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.4075 per share. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Metro’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD boosted their target price on shares of Metro from C$106.00 to C$108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Metro from C$111.00 to C$110.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Metro from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from C$105.00 to C$95.00 in a report on Monday, July 20th. National Bank Financial dropped their price objective on Metro from C$105.00 to C$102.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, TD Securities raised Metro to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of C$102.33.

About Metro

With annual sales of more than $22 billion, METRO Inc is a food and pharmacy leader in Québec and Ontario, providing employment to more than 97,000 people. Its purpose is to Nourish the health and well-being of our communities. As a retailer, franchisor, distributor, manufacturer, and provider of eCommerce services, the company operates or services a network of some 1,000 food stores under several banners including Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, Food Basics, Adonis and Première Moisson, and some 640 pharmacies primarily under the Jean Coutu, Brunet, Metro Pharmacy and Food Basics Pharmacy banners.