Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (TSE:MFI) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$36.33.

MFI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Desjardins set a C$39.00 price target on Maple Leaf Foods and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Ventum Financial set a C$37.00 price target on Maple Leaf Foods and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. National Bank Financial lifted their price target on Maple Leaf Foods from C$35.00 to C$37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Maple Leaf Foods from C$35.00 to C$36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Maple Leaf Foods from C$33.00 to C$34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Maple Leaf Foods Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of MFI opened at C$29.66 on Thursday. Maple Leaf Foods has a 52-week low of C$23.35 and a 52-week high of C$36.35. The business’s fifty day moving average is C$29.43 and its 200-day moving average is C$27.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 91.78, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of C$3.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.05, a PEG ratio of 18.07 and a beta of 0.54.

Maple Leaf Foods (TSE:MFI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported C$0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Maple Leaf Foods had a return on equity of 36.56% and a net margin of 12.44%.The company had revenue of C$962.85 million for the quarter. Equities analysts anticipate that Maple Leaf Foods will post 1.4334187 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Maple Leaf Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This is a positive change from Maple Leaf Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Maple Leaf Foods’s dividend payout ratio is 20.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Maple Leaf Foods

In other news, insider Andreas Liris acquired 2,500 shares of Maple Leaf Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of C$28.36 per share, for a total transaction of C$70,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$439,580. The trade was a 19.23% increase in their position. Also, Director Jonathan Wallace Ferguson Mccain acquired 7,500 shares of Maple Leaf Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of C$27.92 per share, for a total transaction of C$209,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 148,000 shares in the company, valued at C$4,132,160. The trade was a 5.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 12,500 shares of company stock worth $350,102 and have sold 142,699 shares worth $4,176,580. 39.87% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Maple Leaf Foods

Maple Leaf Foods Inc is a consumer-packaged meats company. It produces prepared meats and meals, fresh pork, and poultry and turkey products. The company also has agribusiness operations. These operations supply livestock to the meat products business operations. Its main markets are Canada, the United States, Japan, and China. The key brands are Maple Leaf and Schneiders, Maple Leaf Prime Naturally, Shopsy, Mitchell’s Gourmet Food, Larse, Parm, and Hygrade.