Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA) Sets New 52-Week Low at $72.70

Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $72.70 and last traded at $73.17, with a volume of 5448 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com lowered Ingles Markets from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. TheStreet lowered Ingles Markets from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th.

Ingles Markets Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.50 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $75.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $79.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 1.45.

Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ingles Markets had a return on equity of 12.92% and a net margin of 3.14%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter.

Ingles Markets Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 11th were issued a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 10th. Ingles Markets’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sharp Laura Ingle sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $152,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,877,200. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders sold 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $607,000 in the last three months. 23.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ingles Markets

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IMKTA. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Ingles Markets by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ingles Markets during the 4th quarter valued at $78,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Ingles Markets by 51.5% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,000 after acquiring an additional 863 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ingles Markets during the 4th quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, Leuthold Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ingles Markets during the 4th quarter valued at $210,000. 62.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ingles Markets

Ingles Markets, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, operates a chain of supermarkets in the southeast United States. It offers food products, including grocery, meat and dairy products, produce, frozen foods, and other perishables; and non-food products, which include fuel centers, pharmacies, health and beauty care products, and general merchandise, as well as private label items.