Compass Group (LON:CPG) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Compass Group PLC (LON:CPG) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as GBX 2,807 ($34.69) and last traded at GBX 2,799 ($34.59), with a volume of 5176492 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,751 ($34.00).

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CPG has been the subject of several research reports. Berenberg Bank restated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 2,960 ($36.58) price objective on shares of Compass Group in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Compass Group from GBX 2,500 ($30.89) to GBX 2,600 ($32.13) and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 2,690 ($33.24).

Compass Group Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 89.31. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is GBX 2,698.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 2,533.27. The company has a market cap of £47.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3,678.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.81.

Compass Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a boost from Compass Group’s previous dividend of $0.21. This represents a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 16th. Compass Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5,789.47%.

Insider Transactions at Compass Group

In other news, insider Dominic Blakemore sold 119,821 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,692 ($33.27), for a total value of £3,225,581.32 ($3,986,136.09). Also, insider Palmer Brown bought 9,401 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 2,656 ($32.82) per share, with a total value of £249,690.56 ($308,564.71). Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

About Compass Group

Compass Group PLC is a world leading food service company, which generated annual revenues of £31.3 billion in the year to 30 September 2023. It serves meals to millions of people in c. 35 countries and employs and engages with c. 550,000 people. The Company specialises in providing food and a range of targeted support services across the core sectors of Business & Industry, Healthcare & Senior Living, Education, Sports & Leisure and Defence, Offshore & Remote, with an established brand portfolio.