Scotiabank Raises Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Price Target to C$47.00

Empire (TSE:EMP.A) had its target price raised by Scotiabank from C$44.00 to C$47.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,BayStreet.CA reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on EMP.A. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Empire from C$43.00 to C$44.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. TD Securities increased their price objective on Empire from C$44.00 to C$48.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Desjardins upped their target price on Empire from C$44.00 to C$47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, National Bankshares lifted their price target on shares of Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of C$48.57.

Empire Trading Down 1.3 %

TSE:EMP.A opened at C$44.69 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of C$6.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.48. Empire has a 52 week low of C$31.45 and a 52 week high of C$46.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51. The company has a fifty day moving average of C$41.44 and a 200 day moving average of C$37.84.

Empire Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. Empire’s payout ratio is 29.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Empire

In other news, Senior Officer Douglas Bigler Nathanson sold 3,658 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$40.26, for a total value of C$147,252.79. Also, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 4,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$41.21, for a total value of C$199,868.50. Insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Empire Company Profile

Empire Co Ltd key businesses are food retailing, investments, and other operations. The food retailing division operates through Empire’s subsidiary Sobeys and represents nearly all of the company’s income. This segment owns, affiliates, or franchises more than 1,500 stores in 10 provinces, under retail banners including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, Lawton’s Drug Stores, and multiple retail fuel locations.