Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) Share Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Associated British Foods shares moved above their 200-day moving average, trading as high as GBX 2,040 and last changing hands at GBX 2,020.
• Analysts remain cautious: recent target cuts and ratings leave the stock with a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of about GBX 1,788.57.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of GBX 174.90, with revenue of GBX 1,945.90 billion, while insider Loraine Woodhouse bought 1,074 shares in April.

Associated British Foods plc (LON:ABF - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 1,898.80 and traded as high as GBX 2,040. Associated British Foods shares last traded at GBX 2,020, with a volume of 584,931 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Associated British Foods from GBX 1,780 to GBX 1,700 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. Citigroup dropped their target price on Associated British Foods from GBX 1,450 to GBX 1,410 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut Associated British Foods to an "underperform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from GBX 2,050 to GBX 1,850 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a GBX 2,050 price target on shares of Associated British Foods in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an "underperform" rating and issued a GBX 1,650 price objective on shares of Associated British Foods in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of GBX 1,788.57.

Associated British Foods Stock Performance

The business's 50-day simple moving average is GBX 1,901.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 1,898.80. The firm has a market cap of £14.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.63.

Associated British Foods (LON:ABF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 17th. The company reported GBX 174.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Associated British Foods had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 8.44%. The business had revenue of GBX 1,945.90 billion for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Associated British Foods plc will post 188.0990415 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Associated British Foods

In other Associated British Foods news, insider Loraine Woodhouse acquired 1,074 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 22nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of GBX 1,853 per share, with a total value of £19,901.22. Corporate insiders own 1.52% of the company's stock.

Associated British Foods Company Profile

Associated British Foods is a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group with sales of £13.9bn, 128,000 employees and operations in 53 countries across Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia. Our purpose is to provide safe, nutritious, affordable food, and clothing that is great value for money. With the breadth of our business, our brands and global reach, ABF aims to consistently deliver value to its stakeholders. Our business is split into five segments: Grocery; Sugar; Agriculture; Ingredients; and Retail.

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