Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) to Issue Annual Dividend of $2.04

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) announced an annual dividend on Tuesday, April 15th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of 2.0369 per share on Thursday, June 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This is a 37.8% increase from Sanofi’s previous annual dividend of $1.48.

Sanofi has raised its dividend payment by an average of 1.8% annually over the last three years. Sanofi has a payout ratio of 41.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Sanofi to earn $4.75 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.04 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 42.9%.

Sanofi Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ SNY traded up $0.34 during trading on Thursday, hitting $50.90. 2,856,361 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,367,667. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $54.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.59 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.57. Sanofi has a 12-month low of $45.22 and a 12-month high of $60.12.

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70. Sanofi had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 25.61%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sanofi will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Sanofi

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Sanofi stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) by 52.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,420 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,869 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Sanofi were worth $261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Sanofi in a research report on Friday, March 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Sanofi from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Sanofi to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Sanofi in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.33.

About Sanofi

Sanofi, a healthcare company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of therapeutic solutions in the United States, Europe, Canada, and internationally. It operates through Pharmaceuticals, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare segments. The company provides specialty care, such as DUPIXENT, neurology and immunology, rare diseases, oncology, and rare blood disorders; medicines for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; and established prescription products.