Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$40.08 and traded as high as C$43.54. Empire shares last traded at C$43.06, with a volume of 388,807 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Desjardins upped their target price on shares of Empire from C$47.00 to C$50.00 in a report on Sunday, December 15th. CIBC upped their target price on Empire from C$47.00 to C$55.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. TD Securities boosted their price target on Empire from C$44.00 to C$48.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Empire from C$44.00 to C$47.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Empire presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of C$48.57.

Empire Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51. The stock has a market capitalization of C$6.01 billion, a PE ratio of 15.62, a PEG ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.48. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is C$43.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$40.13.

Empire Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Empire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Senior Officer Simon Gagne sold 8,458 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$44.48, for a total value of C$376,211.84. Also, Senior Officer Douglas Bigler Nathanson sold 7,265 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$45.15, for a total value of C$328,014.75. Insiders have sold 96,154 shares of company stock worth $4,305,270 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.18% of the company's stock.

Empire Company Profile

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.