Saputo (TSE:SAP) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Saputo Inc. shares reached a new 52-week high of C$34.87 during trading, closing at C$34.85 with a trading volume of over 214,000 shares.
• Various analysts have upgraded their price objectives for Saputo, with Scotiabank raising its target to C$37.00 and TD Securities to C$38.00, indicating a strong Buy rating across multiple reports.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.20, reflecting a 5.26% rise from the previous $0.19 and yielding approximately 2.3% annually.

Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as C$34.87 and last traded at C$34.85, with a volume of 214644 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at C$34.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Saputo from C$36.00 to C$37.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. National Bankshares lifted their price objective on Saputo from C$29.00 to C$35.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. TD Securities lifted their price objective on Saputo from C$35.00 to C$38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Desjardins lifted their price objective on Saputo from C$31.00 to C$36.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Saputo from C$27.00 to C$34.00 in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of C$34.75.

Saputo Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of C$33.74 and a 200 day moving average of C$29.36. The stock has a market capitalization of C$14.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -103.21, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 51.68, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Saputo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is an increase from Saputo's previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Saputo's payout ratio is currently -223.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Saputo

In related news, insider Leanne Cutts bought 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of C$32.93 per share, for a total transaction of C$131,720.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 23,500 shares in the company, valued at C$773,855. This represents a 20.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. 40.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Saputo

Saputo is a global dairy processor domiciled in Canada (28% of fiscal 2022 sales) with operations in the United States (43%), the U.K. (6%), and other international markets (23%). It sells cheese, cream, fluid milk, and other dairy products. In the retail segment (50% of revenue), its mix of brands include Saputo, Armstrong, Cheer, Cathedral City, and Frylight.

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