Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$33.81.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on SAP shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Saputo from C$36.00 to C$32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Saputo from C$30.00 to C$27.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Desjardins set a C$34.00 price objective on shares of Saputo in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Saputo from C$38.00 to C$37.00 in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Saputo from C$39.00 to C$38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 29th.

Saputo Stock Down 1.1 %

SAP stock opened at C$23.06 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is C$25.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$28.38. The company has a market cap of C$9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 53.17, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.59. Saputo has a fifty-two week low of C$22.65 and a fifty-two week high of C$32.15.

Saputo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were given a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Saputo’s payout ratio is 120.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Saputo

In other Saputo news, Senior Officer Leanne Cutts acquired 4,000 shares of Saputo stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of C$26.25 per share, for a total transaction of C$105,000.00. Company insiders own 40.45% of the company’s stock.

Saputo Company Profile

Saputo Inc produces, markets, and distributes dairy products in Canada, the United States, Argentina, Australia, and the United Kingdom. The company offers cheeses, including mozzarella and cheddar; specialty cheeses, such as ricotta, provolone, blue, parmesan, goat cheese, feta, romano, and havarti; fine cheeses comprising brie and camembert; and other cheeses that include brick, colby, farmer, munster, monterey jack, fresh curd, and processed cheeses.