Marston’s (LON:MARS) Trading Down 11.6% – What’s Next?

Marston’s PLC (LON:MARS)’s share price dropped 11.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as GBX 57.45 and last traded at GBX 60.90. Approximately 64,059,074 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 990% from the average daily volume of 5,876,187 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 68.90.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MARS shares. Shore Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Marston’s in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Marston’s from GBX 78 to GBX 85 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Panmure Gordon reissued a “buy” rating and set a GBX 80 target price on shares of Marston’s in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Peel Hunt reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 75 price objective on shares of Marston’s in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 80.

Marston’s Trading Down 11.9%

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is GBX 60.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 48.19. The stock has a market capitalization of £383.88 million, a P/E ratio of 5.47, a P/E/G ratio of -0.16 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 198.96.

Marston’s (LON:MARS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 15th. The company reported GBX 8.50 EPS for the quarter. Marston’s had a negative return on equity of 2.72% and a negative net margin of 1.91%. As a group, analysts forecast that Marston’s PLC will post 8.364486 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marston’s news, insider Justin Platt acquired 158,309 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 59 per share, for a total transaction of £93,402.31. Insiders own 1.32% of the company’s stock.

Marston’s Company Profile

Marston’s PLC operates managed, franchised, tenanted, partnership, and leased pubs in the United Kingdom. It is also involved in the property management; telecommunications; and insurance businesses. The company was formerly known as The Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries PLC and changed its name to Marston’s PLC in January 2007. The company was founded in 1834 and is based in Wolverhampton, the United Kingdom.