Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Stock Price Down 24.4% – Time to Sell?

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) fell 24.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 2,218 ($29.35) and last traded at GBX 2,327.73 ($30.81). 5,287,830 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 115% from the average session volume of 2,465,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,078 ($40.74).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on BNZL shares. Citigroup raised shares of Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Shore Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a GBX 2,800 ($37.06) target price on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of GBX 3,375 ($44.67).

Bunzl Trading Down 24.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of GBX 3,114.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 3,338.11. The stock has a market capitalization of £7.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.57) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Bunzl had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 16.82%. On average, research analysts expect that Bunzl plc will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a GBX 53.80 ($0.71) dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is an increase from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $20.10. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.39%.

Insider Transactions at Bunzl

In related news, insider Frank van Zanten purchased 4,000 shares of Bunzl stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of GBX 3,037 ($40.19) per share, for a total transaction of £121,480 ($160,772.90). 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Bunzl Company Profile

Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, cleaning and hygiene supplies, and personal protection equipment to grocery stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores.