Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Downgraded to Sector Perform Rating by Scotiabank

Key Points

• Scotiabank downgraded Empire from "outperform" to "sector perform" and set a C$52.00 price target, implying roughly a 5% upside from the previous close.
• Multiple Canadian brokers have trimmed targets and shifted toward neutral views—two analysts rate Buy and four rate Hold—leaving an average analyst rating of Hold and an average price target of C$52.83.
• Shares slipped C$1.33 to C$49.50 on the news; Empire trades at a high P/E of 73.9, a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.5, and recently reported C$0.72 EPS on C$7.89 billion in quarterly revenue.

Empire (TSE:EMP.A - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Scotiabank from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. They presently have a C$52.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank's target price indicates a potential upside of 5.05% from the company's previous close.

EMP.A has been the subject of several other research reports. National Bank Financial reduced their target price on shares of Empire from C$58.00 to C$54.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Empire from C$61.00 to C$55.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 23rd. TD Securities reduced their target price on shares of Empire from C$58.00 to C$50.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Desjardins cut their price objective on shares of Empire from C$60.00 to C$53.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut their price objective on shares of Empire from C$59.00 to C$53.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of C$52.83.

Empire Stock Performance

Shares of EMP.A stock traded down C$1.33 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting C$49.50. 160,034 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 495,033. The firm has a market capitalization of C$11.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.88, a PEG ratio of 16.20 and a beta of -0.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50 day moving average price is C$48.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$48.70. Empire has a 52 week low of C$43.81 and a 52 week high of C$58.32.

Empire (TSE:EMP.A - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported C$0.72 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$7.89 billion during the quarter. Empire had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 12.94%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Empire will post 2.9581227 earnings per share for the current year.

About Empire

Empire Co Ltd key businesses are food retailing, investments, and other operations. The food retailing division operates through Empire's subsidiary Sobeys and represents nearly all of the company's income. This segment owns, affiliates, or franchises more than 1,500 stores in 10 provinces, under retail banners including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, Lawton's Drug Stores, and multiple retail fuel locations. The company's investment and other operations segment include the investment in Crombie REIT, which is an open-ended Canadian real estate investment trust, as well as the Genstar Development Partnership.

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