Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Consensus Rating: Maple Leaf Foods has received an average recommendation of "Buy" from seven analysts, with one hold, five buy, and one strong buy ratings.
• Price Targets: CIBC and TD Securities have raised their price targets for the stock, now set at C$38.00 and C$41.00 respectively.
• Dividend Details: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.3%.

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Buy" from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$34.60.

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Securities boosted their target price on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$38.00 to C$41.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Stifel Canada raised shares of Maple Leaf Foods to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$33.00 to C$35.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$32.00 to C$38.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th.

Insider Transactions at Maple Leaf Foods

In related news, Senior Officer Olajumoke Fagbemi sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$26.33, for a total transaction of C$94,788.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 28 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately C$737.24. This represents a 99.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Company insiders own 39.87% of the company's stock.

Maple Leaf Foods Stock Performance

TSE:MFI traded down C$0.31 during trading hours on Friday, hitting C$28.93. 232,679 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 205,727. The stock has a market capitalization of C$3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 106.76, a PEG ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.47. Maple Leaf Foods has a 52-week low of C$19.61 and a 52-week high of C$30.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 130.19, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company's 50 day moving average price is C$28.62 and its 200-day moving average price is C$25.59.

Maple Leaf Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Maple Leaf Foods's dividend payout ratio is 324.76%.

Maple Leaf Foods Company Profile

Maple Leaf Foods Inc is a consumer-packaged meats company. It produces prepared meats and meals, fresh pork, and poultry and turkey products. The company also has agribusiness operations. These operations supply livestock to the meat products business operations. Its main markets are Canada, the United States, Japan, and China.