Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Sets New 52-Week High at $41.45

Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as C$41.45 and last traded at C$41.33, with a volume of 348525 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$40.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on EMP.A shares. TD Securities raised their price target on Empire from C$38.00 to C$44.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Empire from C$40.00 to C$43.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. CIBC raised their price objective on Empire from C$40.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. National Bankshares raised their price objective on Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Empire from C$41.00 to C$42.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Empire currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$43.14.

Empire Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of C$37.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of C$34.87. The stock has a market cap of C$5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.82, a PEG ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51.

Empire Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Empire’s payout ratio is currently 29.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Empire

In other news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total transaction of C$108,960.00. In other news, Senior Officer Vivek Sood sold 4,236 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$36.17, for a total transaction of C$153,228.83. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 381 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$13,781.91. Also, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total value of C$108,960.00. Insiders have sold 15,419 shares of company stock worth $588,903 over the last quarter. 2.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Empire

Empire Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the food retail and related real estate businesses in Canada. It operates through two segments, Food Retailing, and Investments and Other Operations. The company owns, affiliates, and franchises approximately 1,500 retail stores under various retail banners, including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, and Lawtons Drugs; and approximately 350 retail fuel locations.