Marks and Spencer Group plc (LON:MKS) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts remain broadly positive: Eight brokerages give Marks and Spencer a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with six buys and two holds. The average 12-month price target is GBX 422.50.
• Recent broker updates included JPMorgan raising its rating to “overweight” and lifting its target to GBX 450, while Citigroup cut its target to GBX 390 but maintained a “buy” rating.
• Shares opened at GBX 405.10, near their 52-week high of GBX 411.80. Insiders sold a combined 645,402 shares in recent transactions, while the company reported GBX 23.80 in quarterly earnings per share.

Shares of Marks and Spencer Group plc (LON:MKS - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eight analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is GBX 422.50.

MKS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Marks and Spencer Group to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from GBX 440 to GBX 450 in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 425 price objective on shares of Marks and Spencer Group in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 440 target price on shares of Marks and Spencer Group in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Marks and Spencer Group from GBX 410 to GBX 390 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Shore Capital Group restated a "house stock" rating on shares of Marks and Spencer Group in a report on Thursday, July 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marks and Spencer Group

In other news, insider Stuart Machin sold 560,402 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 384, for a total transaction of £2,151,943.68. Also, insider Alison Dolan sold 85,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 359, for a total value of £305,150. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marks and Spencer Group Stock Down 1.1%

MKS opened at GBX 405.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 111.89, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of £8.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 1.01. The stock's fifty day moving average is GBX 373.92 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 363.91. Marks and Spencer Group has a one year low of GBX 301.10 and a one year high of GBX 411.80.

Marks and Spencer Group (LON:MKS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported GBX 23.80 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of GBX 1,727.36 billion during the quarter. Marks and Spencer Group had a return on equity of 8.86% and a net margin of 1.50%. On average, equities analysts predict that Marks and Spencer Group will post 26.0113154 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Marks and Spencer Group

M&S has a heritage of quality, innovation and value for money and has been voted the UK's most trusted brand. From these foundations, M&S is reshaping for sustainable profitable growth and value creation. We operate as a family of businesses, selling high-quality, great-value, own-brand products and services, alongside a carefully selected range of third-party brands. We do this through a network of stores and websites globally, and together, across our stores, support centres, warehouses and supply chain, our 65,000 colleagues serve over 30 million customers each year.

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