Scotiabank Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Stock

Key Points

• Scotiabank has raised its price objective for Empire (TSE:EMP.A) from C$53.00 to C$58.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.61% from its previous close.
• Multiple brokerages, including National Bankshares and Royal Bank of Canada, have set higher price targets for EMP.A, with the average target price now at C$56.86.
• Empire stock has experienced a recent decline of 1.6%, trading at C$50.17 amid lower trading volumes.

Empire (TSE:EMP.A - Get Free Report) had its price objective increased by investment analysts at Scotiabank from C$53.00 to C$58.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Scotiabank's price target indicates a potential upside of 15.61% from the stock's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also commented on EMP.A. National Bankshares set a C$59.00 price target on shares of Empire and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Empire from C$56.00 to C$61.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Desjardins increased their price target on shares of Empire from C$50.00 to C$55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. TD Securities increased their price target on shares of Empire from C$48.00 to C$58.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, CIBC increased their price target on shares of Empire from C$55.00 to C$59.00 in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of C$56.86.

Empire Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of EMP.A stock traded down C$0.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching C$50.17. 171,450 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 440,856. The business's fifty day moving average is C$55.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$51.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Empire has a 12-month low of C$38.52 and a 12-month high of C$58.32. The firm has a market capitalization of C$11.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.12, a P/E/G ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.27.

Insider Activity at Empire

In other Empire news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 4,200 shares of Empire stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$55.70, for a total transaction of C$233,940.00. Also, Senior Officer Simon Gagne sold 4,475 shares of Empire stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$55.79, for a total value of C$249,660.25. Insiders sold 206,858 shares of company stock worth $11,591,674 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.18% of the company's stock.

About Empire

Empire Co Ltd key businesses are food retailing, investments, and other operations. The food retailing division operates through Empire's subsidiary Sobeys and represents nearly all of the company's income. This segment owns, affiliates, or franchises more than 1,500 stores in 10 provinces, under retail banners including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, Lawton's Drug Stores, and multiple retail fuel locations.

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