Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU) Stock Now Rated "Hold" by Sell-Side Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating on Metro, with seven holds, one buy and one strong buy among nine firms. The average 12-month price target is C$102.33, compared with the stock’s opening price of C$90.53.
• Metro reported quarterly EPS of C$1.24 on revenue of C$6.97 billion, while analysts forecast full-year EPS of approximately C$4.82.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of C$0.4075 per share, equating to C$1.63 annually and a 1.8% yield. Two insiders also recently sold shares, reducing their individual holdings.

Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the nine research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$102.33.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MRU shares. National Bank Financial reduced their target price on Metro from C$105.00 to C$102.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. TD Securities raised Metro to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. TD increased their price target on shares of Metro from C$106.00 to C$108.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Metro from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from C$105.00 to C$95.00 in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Metro from C$111.00 to C$110.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th.

Metro Stock Performance

MRU stock opened at C$90.53 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day moving average is C$90.53 and its 200-day moving average is C$91.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 71.09. The company has a market cap of C$18.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.11. Metro has a twelve month low of C$86.63 and a twelve month high of C$101.30.

Metro (TSE:MRU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported C$1.24 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$6.97 billion during the quarter. Metro had a return on equity of 12.87% and a net margin of 4.00%. Equities research analysts forecast that Metro will post 4.8188614 EPS for the current year.

Metro Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 22nd were given a dividend of $0.4075 per share. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. Metro's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Simon Rivet sold 2,650 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$89.35, for a total value of C$236,777.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,225 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$1,807,103.75. The trade was a 11.58% decrease in their position. Also, insider Alain Tadros sold 960 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$90.27, for a total transaction of C$86,659.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 5,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$537,287.04. This represents a 13.89% decrease in their position. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

About Metro

With annual sales of more than $22 billion, METRO Inc is a food and pharmacy leader in Québec and Ontario, providing employment to more than 97,000 people. Its purpose is to Nourish the health and well-being of our communities. As a retailer, franchisor, distributor, manufacturer, and provider of eCommerce services, the company operates or services a network of some 1,000 food stores under several banners including Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, Food Basics, Adonis and Première Moisson, and some 640 pharmacies primarily under the Jean Coutu, Brunet, Metro Pharmacy and Food Basics Pharmacy banners.

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