Desjardins Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Metro (TSE:MRU) Stock Price

Metro (TSE:MRU) had its target price cut by analysts at Desjardins from C$99.00 to C$97.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the stock. Desjardins’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 7.77% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Scotia reduced their target price on shares of Metro from C$103.00 to C$96.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. TD Securities reduced their target price on shares of Metro from C$118.00 to C$113.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Metro from C$110.00 to C$105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reduced their target price on shares of Metro from C$101.00 to C$97.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank lowered shares of Metro from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a C$103.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$103.63.

Metro Price Performance

Shares of TSE MRU traded down C$0.34 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching C$90.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 241,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 529,125. The stock has a 50-day moving average of C$95.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$96.29. The stock has a market capitalization of C$19.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a P/E/G ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 69.33, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.42. Metro has a 1-year low of C$89.30 and a 1-year high of C$109.20.

Metro (TSE:MRU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported C$1.11 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$5.11 billion during the quarter. Metro had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 13.93%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Metro will post 4.8188614 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Paolo Bravi sold 2,430 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of C$91.46, for a total value of C$222,247.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 19,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$1,804,505.80. This represents a 10.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Dan Gabbard sold 2,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$96.67, for a total transaction of C$287,883.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$1,193,294.48. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,844 shares of company stock worth $1,096,119. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

About Metro

Metro is one of the largest grocery retailers in Canada. With its 2018 acquisition of Jean Coutu, it also boasts a meaningful drugstore footprint. Noteworthy grocery banners include Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, and Food Basics, while its pharmacies primarily operate under the Jean Coutu and Brunet trademarks. It utilizes an array of business models, but it most frequently acts as either a retailer, operating individual stores, or a franchiser, licensing its trademarks and supplying merchandise to franchisees.