Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average After Insider Selling

Key Points

• Maple Leaf Foods shares surpassed their 200-day moving average, reaching as high as C$36.15, following insider buying activities, notably a purchase by insider Olajumoke Fagbemi of 2,651 shares.
• Multiple brokerages have raised their target prices for Maple Leaf Foods, with National Bankshares increasing its price target to C$36.00 and TD Securities to C$47.00, reflecting a consensus rating of "Buy."
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, scheduled for payment on September 29th, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.7%.

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI - Get Free Report) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday following insider buying activity. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of C$28.08 and traded as high as C$36.15. Maple Leaf Foods shares last traded at C$36.13, with a volume of 193,551 shares changing hands.

Specifically, insider Olajumoke Fagbemi purchased 2,651 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$35.71 per share, for a total transaction of C$94,665.62. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 2,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$95,665.48. This represents a 9,467.86% increase in their ownership of the stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MFI. National Bankshares lifted their target price on Maple Leaf Foods from C$31.00 to C$36.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$42.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. CIBC upped their target price on Maple Leaf Foods from C$32.00 to C$38.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Maple Leaf Foods from C$35.00 to C$38.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Stifel Canada upgraded Maple Leaf Foods to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of C$38.07.

Maple Leaf Foods Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 130.19. The stock has a market capitalization of C$4.48 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.82. The stock's 50-day moving average is C$32.30 and its 200 day moving average is C$28.08.

Maple Leaf Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Monday, September 29th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Maple Leaf Foods's payout ratio is presently 63.89%.

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.

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