Benson Investment Management Company Inc. Purchases Shares of 111,920 Sanofi $SNY

Key Points

• Benson Investment Management purchased a new stake of 111,920 shares of Sanofi in Q4, valued at approximately $5.424 million.
• Sanofi raised its annual dividend to $2.4225 per share, payable June 3 to holders of record on May 4, with a reported payout ratio of 44.44%.
• Analysts' consensus rating is a "Hold" with a consensus target price of $58.00; recent research includes Sanford C. Bernstein upgrading to "strong-buy" while several firms maintained or lowered ratings to neutral/hold.

Benson Investment Management Company Inc. purchased a new stake in Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 111,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,424,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SNY. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sanofi during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new stake in Sanofi during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in Sanofi during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sanofi during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Sanofi in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.03% of the company's stock.

Sanofi Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:SNY opened at $48.06 on Friday. Sanofi has a 12 month low of $43.32 and a 12 month high of $55.73. The firm has a market cap of $117.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company's 50 day moving average is $46.47 and its 200-day moving average is $48.06.

Sanofi Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th will be given a dividend of $2.4225 per share. This represents a yield of 502.0%. This is an increase from Sanofi's previous annual dividend of $2.04. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. Sanofi's payout ratio is presently 44.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Sanofi to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Sanofi in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sanofi from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Sanofi in a research report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America lowered Sanofi from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.00.

Sanofi Profile

Sanofi NASDAQ: SNY is a multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in France that researches, develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and consumer healthcare products. The company operates across multiple therapeutic areas, including immunology, rare diseases, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, and vaccines through its Sanofi Pasteur division. Sanofi sells products to hospitals, clinics, governments and retail pharmacies, with a broad global footprint and significant presence in Europe, North America and emerging markets.

Key commercial offerings include specialty biologics and established small-molecule medicines.

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