Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average of $34.38

Empire Company Limited (TSE:EMP.A - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$34.38 and traded as high as C$38.65. Empire shares last traded at C$38.64, with a volume of 254,019 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EMP.A has been the subject of several recent research reports. National Bankshares raised their target price on shares of Empire from C$41.00 to C$42.00 in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Desjardins raised their target price on shares of Empire from C$38.00 to C$40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Empire from C$42.00 to C$41.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Empire from C$36.00 to C$38.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Empire from C$35.00 to C$40.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of C$39.57.

Empire Stock Down 0.4 %

The business's 50 day moving average price is C$36.78 and its 200-day moving average price is C$34.38. The firm has a market capitalization of C$5.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.23, a P/E/G ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 134.59, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Empire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is an increase from Empire's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 15th. Empire's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Empire news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total transaction of C$108,960.00. In related news, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$36.32, for a total value of C$108,960.00. Also, Director William Linton sold 7,058 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of C$34.39, for a total transaction of C$242,690.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 875 shares in the company, valued at C$30,087.05. Insiders sold 14,294 shares of company stock worth $504,880 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.15% of the company's stock.

About Empire

Empire Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the food retail and related real estate businesses in Canada. It operates through two segments, Food Retailing, and Investments and Other Operations. The company owns, affiliates, and franchises approximately 1,500 retail stores under various retail banners, including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, and Lawtons Drugs; and approximately 350 retail fuel locations.