George Weston (TSE:WN) Stock Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average of $167.04

George Weston Limited (TSE:WN)’s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$167.04 and traded as high as C$179.42. George Weston shares last traded at C$177.25, with a volume of 77,008 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. CIBC boosted their price objective on George Weston from C$213.00 to C$222.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on George Weston from C$172.00 to C$185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. TD Securities upped their price target on George Weston from C$205.00 to C$215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on George Weston from C$216.00 to C$218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of C$201.00.

George Weston Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of C$178.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$167.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 158.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of C$23.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.49, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38.

George Weston (TSE:WN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported C$2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. George Weston had a return on equity of 19.71% and a net margin of 2.56%. The firm had revenue of C$14.70 billion for the quarter. Equities analysts forecast that George Weston Limited will post 11.876494 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

George Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.713 per share. This represents a $2.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. George Weston’s payout ratio is 26.51%.

Insider Transactions at George Weston

In other news, Director Willard Galen Garfield Weston sold 79,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$144.88, for a total transaction of C$11,474,503.92. In related news, Director Willard Galen Garfield Weston sold 79,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$144.88, for a total transaction of C$11,474,503.92. Also, Senior Officer Richard Dufresne sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$181.41, for a total value of C$1,814,055.00. Insiders have sold 151,008 shares of company stock valued at $24,350,724 over the last ninety days. 58.56% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

George Weston Company Profile

George Weston Limited provides food and drug retailing, and financial services in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw) and Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (Choice Properties). The Loblaw segment provides grocery, pharmacy and healthcare services, health and beauty products, apparel, general merchandise, and financial services.