Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) Stock Now Rated "Hold" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• Bunzl has a consensus “Hold” rating from seven analysts: two recommend selling, three recommend holding, and two recommend buying.
• Analyst price targets vary significantly, including Jefferies’ GBX 1,900 “underperform” target and Citigroup’s £300 “buy” target, while the reported average 12-month target is GBX 6,407.14.
• Insider Frank van Zanten bought 34,946 shares worth approximately £919,080. Bunzl shares opened at GBX 2,618, within a one-year range of GBX 1,981 to GBX 2,898.

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is GBX 6,407.14.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a GBX 1,900 price objective on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Bunzl from GBX 2,610 to GBX 2,800 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a GBX 2,600 target price on shares of Bunzl in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Bunzl from £280 to £300 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a GBX 3,000 price objective on shares of Bunzl in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Frank van Zanten acquired 34,946 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 2,630 per share, with a total value of £919,079.80. 0.38% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Bunzl Price Performance

BNZL opened at GBX 2,618 on Friday. Bunzl has a one year low of GBX 1,981 and a one year high of GBX 2,898. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 95.61, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company's 50 day simple moving average is GBX 2,719.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 2,540.48. The stock has a market capitalization of £8.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.32.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 1st. The company reported GBX 65.70 EPS for the quarter. Bunzl had a return on equity of 20.61% and a net margin of 4.82%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bunzl will post 213.3413462 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bunzl Company Profile

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. It also provides food packaging, disposable tableware, guest amenities, catering equipment, agricultural supplies, cleaning and hygiene products, and safety items to hotels, restaurants, contract caterers, food processors, commercial growers, and the leisure sector; and gloves, boots, hard hats, ear and eye protection, and other workwear, as well as cleaning and hygiene supplies, and asset protection products to industrial and construction, and ecommerce sectors.

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