Diploma (LON:DPLM) Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Diploma PLC (LON:DPLM - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 4,323.40 ($54.33) and traded as high as GBX 4,328 ($54.39). Diploma shares last traded at GBX 4,304 ($54.09), with a volume of 535,398 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DPLM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Diploma from GBX 4,150 ($52.16) to GBX 4,370 ($54.92) and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Shore Capital cut shares of Diploma to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a GBX 5,100 ($64.09) price objective on shares of Diploma in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of GBX 4,555 ($57.25).

Diploma Price Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is GBX 4,409.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 4,324.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 45.69. The company has a market cap of £5.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5,004.65, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.75.

Diploma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, January 16th will be paid a GBX 42 ($0.53) dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 16th. This is a positive change from Diploma's previous dividend of $17.30. This represents a yield of 0.93%. Diploma's dividend payout ratio is presently 6,627.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Diploma news, insider Johnny Thomson sold 26,794 shares of Diploma stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 4,536 ($57.01), for a total value of £1,215,375.84 ($1,527,429.73). Corporate insiders own 0.52% of the company's stock.

Diploma Company Profile

Diploma PLC, together with its subsidiaries, supplies specialized technical products and services in the United Kingdom, Continental Europe, North America, and internationally. It operates through three business sectors: Life Sciences, Seals, and Controls. The Life Sciences sector supplies technology-enabled products used in surgical procedures in operating theatres and endoscopy; testing equipment and services for clinical laboratories; and bio-pharma, food safety and testing, and other research-oriented products.