Metro (TSE:MRU) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Metro (TSE:MRU) from a moderate buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Desjardins increased their target price on Metro from C$85.00 to C$95.00 in a research report on Friday. National Bankshares increased their price objective on Metro from C$85.00 to C$88.00 in a report on Thursday, August 15th. CIBC boosted their target price on shares of Metro from C$86.00 to C$91.00 in a report on Thursday. Cfra increased their price target on shares of Metro from C$76.00 to C$85.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Metro from C$82.00 to C$85.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$87.50.

Metro Price Performance

MRU stock opened at C$89.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 64.18, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Metro has a 1 year low of C$65.43 and a 1 year high of C$90.72. The firm has a 50-day moving average of C$84.71 and a 200 day moving average of C$80.91. The company has a market cap of C$19.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.94, a PEG ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.08.

Metro Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were paid a dividend of $0.335 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 24th. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. Metro’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.76%.

Metro Company Profile

Metro Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer, franchisor, distributor, and manufacturer in the food and pharmaceutical sectors in Canada. The company operates supermarkets, discount, neighborhood, and specialty stores that provide fresh and grocery products, baked goods, prepared food products, meats, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, frozen food products, bakery products, delicatessen items, and pastries.