Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) Raises Dividend to GBX 53.80 Per Share

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) announced a dividend on Monday, March 3rd, DividendData.Co.Uk reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of GBX 53.80 ($0.73) per share on Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a 167.7% increase from Bunzl's previous dividend of $20.10. The official announcement can be viewed at this link.

Bunzl Stock Performance

LON:BNZL traded down GBX 42 ($0.57) during trading hours on Friday, hitting GBX 2,376 ($32.16). 699,014 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,209,101. The stock has a market capitalization of £7.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.42, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45. Bunzl has a twelve month low of GBX 2,218 ($30.03) and a twelve month high of GBX 3,732 ($50.52). The firm has a 50-day moving average of GBX 2,654.65 and a 200 day moving average of GBX 3,116.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.63) EPS for the quarter. Bunzl had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 16.82%. On average, analysts forecast that Bunzl will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Bunzl

In related news, insider Daniela Barone Soares purchased 431 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 2,307 ($31.23) per share, with a total value of £9,943.17 ($13,460.36). Also, insider Frank van Zanten purchased 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 3,037 ($41.11) per share, with a total value of £121,480 ($164,451.06). Over the last three months, insiders bought 12,910 shares of company stock valued at $32,966,219. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Shore Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Bunzl in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of GBX 3,375 ($45.69).

About Bunzl

Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, cleaning and hygiene supplies, and personal protection equipment to grocery stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores.