North West (TSE:NWC) Stock Price Crosses Below 200-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Shares of The North West Company Inc. (TSE:NWC - Get Free Report) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$50.15 and traded as low as C$47.17. North West shares last traded at C$47.61, with a volume of 131,090 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NWC. CIBC increased their price target on shares of North West from C$59.00 to C$60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of North West from C$58.00 to C$60.00 in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, TD Securities lifted their price target on shares of North West from C$59.00 to C$63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th.

North West Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 59.78, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of C$2.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of C$53.38 and a 200 day moving average price of C$50.15.

North West Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This is a boost from North West's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. North West's dividend payout ratio is 58.83%.

Insider Transactions at North West

In related news, Director George Mcconnell Daniel sold 10,943 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$54.95, for a total transaction of C$601,317.85. Also, Senior Officer Vineet Gupta bought 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of C$49.95 per share, for a total transaction of C$109,890.00. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 21,928 shares of company stock worth $1,191,408. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

North West Company Profile

The North West Company Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the retail of food and everyday products and services to rural communities and urban neighborhood markets in northern Canada, rural Alaska, the South Pacific, and the Caribbean. The company operates Northern stores, which offers food, financial services, and general merchandise; NorthMart stores that provides fresh food products, apparel, and health products and services; and Quickstop convenience stores that provides ready-to-eat food products, and fuel and related services.