Scotiabank Increases Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) Price Target to C$161.00

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by research analysts at Scotiabank from C$148.27 to C$161.00 in a report released on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm presently has a "sector perform" rating on the stock. Scotiabank's price target points to a potential upside of 4.13% from the stock's current price.

L has been the subject of several other reports. Desjardins boosted their target price on shares of Loblaw Companies from C$148.00 to C$157.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$130.00 to C$145.00 in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. National Bankshares boosted their price target on Loblaw Companies from C$156.00 to C$159.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Loblaw Companies from C$170.00 to C$172.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, TD Securities boosted their target price on Loblaw Companies from C$150.00 to C$160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Loblaw Companies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$160.71.

Loblaw Companies Stock Performance

L stock traded up C$1.77 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching C$154.61. 279,087 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 363,684. The firm has a market capitalization of C$47.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.12. The business has a 50-day moving average price of C$149.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of C$133.72. Loblaw Companies has a one year low of C$110.52 and a one year high of C$155.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 156.41, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Loblaw Companies (TSE:L - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported C$2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of C$1.92 by C$0.08. Loblaw Companies had a return on equity of 18.96% and a net margin of 3.53%. The firm had revenue of C$14.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of C$14.58 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Loblaw Companies will post 8.4881297 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Loblaw Companies

In other Loblaw Companies news, Senior Officer Frank Gambioli sold 4,603 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$144.00, for a total transaction of C$662,832.00. In other Loblaw Companies news, Senior Officer Robert Wayne Wiebe sold 16,583 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$150.00, for a total value of C$2,487,450.00. Also, Senior Officer Frank Gambioli sold 4,603 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$144.00, for a total value of C$662,832.00. Insiders sold 71,495 shares of company stock valued at $10,547,163 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 52.69% of the company's stock.

About Loblaw Companies

Loblaw Companies Limited, a food and pharmacy company, provides grocery, pharmacy and healthcare services, health and beauty products, apparels, general merchandise, financial services, and wireless mobile products and services in Canada. It operates in two segments, Retail and Financial Services. The Retail segment operates corporate and franchise-owned retail food, and associate-owned drug stores.