Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI) Receives C$36.33 Average PT from Brokerages

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$36.33.

MFI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Securities raised shares of Maple Leaf Foods to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Scotia boosted their price target on Maple Leaf Foods from C$32.00 to C$36.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Desjardins set a C$39.00 price target on Maple Leaf Foods and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Maple Leaf Foods from C$33.00 to C$34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, National Bank Financial lifted their price objective on Maple Leaf Foods from C$35.00 to C$37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Insider Transactions at Maple Leaf Foods

In related news, Director Jonathan Wallace Ferguson Mccain purchased 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of C$27.92 per share, with a total value of C$209,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 148,000 shares in the company, valued at C$4,132,160. This trade represents a 5.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Andreas Liris sold 4,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$28.70, for a total transaction of C$139,769.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 13,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$373,100. This represents a 27.25% decrease in their position. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 12,500 shares of company stock worth $350,102 and have sold 142,699 shares worth $4,176,580. 39.87% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Maple Leaf Foods Stock Performance

Shares of MFI stock opened at C$28.46 on Friday. Maple Leaf Foods has a 12 month low of C$23.35 and a 12 month high of C$36.35. The stock has a market cap of C$3.54 billion, a PE ratio of 6.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 91.78. The company’s fifty day moving average price is C$29.95 and its 200-day moving average price is C$28.65.

Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported C$0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Maple Leaf Foods had a net margin of 12.44% and a return on equity of 36.56%. The company had revenue of C$962.85 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts expect that Maple Leaf Foods will post 1.4334187 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Maple Leaf Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Maple Leaf Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.90%.

Maple Leaf Foods Company Profile

Maple Leaf Foods Inc is a consumer-packaged meats company. It produces prepared meats and meals, fresh pork, and poultry and turkey products. The company also has agribusiness operations. These operations supply livestock to the meat products business operations. Its main markets are Canada, the United States, Japan, and China. The key brands are Maple Leaf and Schneiders, Maple Leaf Prime Naturally, Shopsy, Mitchell’s Gourmet Food, Larse, Parm, and Hygrade.