Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Ingles Markets Price Performance

Shares of IMKTA stock traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $73.47. The company's stock had a trading volume of 123,963 shares, compared to its average volume of 84,087. The business has a fifty day moving average of $73.37 and a 200-day moving average of $73.54. The stock has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 0.66. Ingles Markets has a twelve month low of $67.10 and a twelve month high of $89.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Ingles Markets had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The firm had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sharp Laura Ingle sold 5,901 shares of Ingles Markets stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.02, for a total transaction of $401,386.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 16,700 shares of company stock valued at $1,160,640 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 23.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ingles Markets

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Ingles Markets during the 4th quarter worth $216,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ingles Markets by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 311,124 shares of the company's stock worth $26,872,000 after acquiring an additional 23,854 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Ingles Markets by 123.5% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 13,221 shares of the company's stock worth $1,142,000 after acquiring an additional 7,306 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in Ingles Markets by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 3,183 shares of the company's stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Ingles Markets by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,521 shares of the company's stock worth $1,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,514 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.54% of the company's stock.

Ingles Markets Company Profile

Ingles Markets, Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, operates a chain of supermarkets in the southeast United States. It offers food products, including grocery, meat and dairy products, produce, frozen foods, and other perishables; and non-food products, which include fuel centers, pharmacies, health and beauty care products, and general merchandise, as well as private label items.

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