Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is GBX 3,375 ($44.83).

Separately, Shore Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bunzl

In related news, insider Daniela Barone Soares acquired 431 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 2,307 ($30.65) per share, with a total value of £9,943.17 ($13,208.25). Also, insider Frank van Zanten acquired 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 3,037 ($40.34) per share, with a total value of £121,480 ($161,370.88). In the last three months, insiders acquired 12,910 shares of company stock worth $32,966,219. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Bunzl Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of BNZL stock opened at GBX 2,520 ($33.48) on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of £8.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00. The business's 50 day moving average is GBX 2,704.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 3,151.84. Bunzl has a twelve month low of GBX 2,218 ($29.46) and a twelve month high of GBX 3,732 ($49.57).

Bunzl (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.58) earnings per share for the quarter. Bunzl had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 16.82%. Equities analysts forecast that Bunzl will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of GBX 53.80 ($0.71) per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Bunzl's previous dividend of $20.10. Bunzl's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.39%.

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.

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