George Weston (TSE:WN) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

George Weston Limited (TSE:WN) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$202.79 and traded as high as C$225.16. George Weston shares last traded at C$223.69, with a volume of 94,431 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Securities lowered their price target on George Weston from C$246.00 to C$242.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of George Weston from C$196.00 to C$220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. CIBC increased their target price on shares of George Weston from C$235.00 to C$254.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Desjardins raised their price target on shares of George Weston from C$212.00 to C$232.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, George Weston has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$229.67.

George Weston Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of C$220.61 and a 200 day moving average price of C$203.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 171.94. The firm has a market cap of C$29.51 billion, a PE ratio of 25.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.03 and a beta of 0.42.

George Weston (TSE:WN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported C$2.93 EPS for the quarter. George Weston had a net margin of 2.06% and a return on equity of 17.52%. The company had revenue of C$14.09 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that George Weston Limited will post 13.0245758 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

George Weston Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. George Weston’s payout ratio is 36.94%.

Insider Activity at George Weston

In other George Weston news, Senior Officer Rashid Wasti sold 150 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$218.50, for a total transaction of C$32,775.00. In related news, Director Willard Galen Garfield Weston sold 154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$207.04, for a total transaction of C$31,884.16. Also, Senior Officer Rashid Wasti sold 150 shares of George Weston stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$218.50, for a total value of C$32,775.00. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 9,400 shares of company stock worth $202,958 and have sold 57,719 shares worth $12,951,952. 59.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About George Weston

George Weston Limited provides food and drug retailing, and financial services in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw) and Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (Choice Properties). The Loblaw segment provides grocery, pharmacy and healthcare services, health and beauty products, apparel, general merchandise, and financial services.