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

Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$31.29.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Saputo from C$36.00 to C$32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Desjardins dropped their price target on Saputo from C$34.00 to C$31.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. National Bankshares reduced their price objective on Saputo from C$31.00 to C$28.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. CIBC dropped their target price on shares of Saputo from C$32.00 to C$29.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, TD Securities reduced their price target on shares of Saputo from C$38.00 to C$37.00 in a report on Monday, November 11th.

Saputo Stock Performance

Shares of SAP opened at C$24.33 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of C$10.26 billion, a PE ratio of -65.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 51.68, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Saputo has a one year low of C$22.59 and a one year high of C$32.15. The company’s fifty day moving average price is C$24.44 and its 200 day moving average price is C$27.25.

Saputo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. Saputo’s dividend payout ratio is currently -203.48%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Senior Officer Leanne Cutts acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of C$26.25 per share, for a total transaction of C$105,000.00. Corporate 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.