Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Given New C$47.00 Price Target at Desjardins

Empire (TSE:EMP.A) had its price objective boosted by analysts at Desjardins from C$44.00 to C$47.00 in a research report issued on Monday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Desjardins’ target price suggests a potential upside of 8.17% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Empire from C$43.00 to C$44.00 in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. CIBC raised their target price on shares of Empire from C$40.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of Empire from C$38.00 to C$44.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. National Bankshares raised their target price on shares of 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 target price on shares of Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$44.29.

Empire Stock Up 0.3 %

EMP.A traded up C$0.13 during midday trading on Monday, reaching C$43.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 78,476 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,771. The firm has a market capitalization of C$6.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.86, a PEG ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51. Empire has a 1 year low of C$31.45 and a 1 year high of C$43.77. The stock’s 50-day moving average is C$41.11 and its 200-day moving average is C$37.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 4,850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$41.21, for a total value of C$199,868.50. Also, Senior Officer Douglas Bigler Nathanson sold 3,658 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$40.26, for a total value of C$147,252.79. Insiders sold 13,033 shares of company stock worth $526,583 in the last three months. 2.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Empire

Empire Co Ltd key businesses are food retailing, investments, and other operations. The food retailing division operates through Empire’s subsidiary Sobeys and represents nearly all of the company’s income. This segment owns, affiliates, or franchises more than 1,500 stores in 10 provinces, under retail banners including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, Lawton’s Drug Stores, and multiple retail fuel locations.