BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Empire (TSE:EMP.A) Stock

Empire (TSE:EMP.A) had its price target boosted by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from C$44.00 to C$48.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,BayStreet.CA reports. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 7.26% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. National Bankshares upped their target price on Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. CIBC increased their price target on Empire from C$47.00 to C$55.00 in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Empire from C$42.00 to C$46.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Empire from C$44.00 to C$47.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Desjardins increased their price target on Empire from C$44.00 to C$47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of C$48.14.

Empire Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Empire stock traded down C$0.53 on Friday, hitting C$44.75. 203,114 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 406,110. Empire has a one year low of C$31.45 and a one year high of C$46.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 135.51, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of C$41.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$37.73. The company has a market capitalization of C$6.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 0.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Empire

In other news, Senior Officer Douglas Bigler Nathanson sold 3,658 shares of Empire stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$40.26, for a total value of C$147,252.79. Also, Senior Officer Pierre St-Laurent sold 4,850 shares of Empire stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$41.21, for a total value of C$199,868.50. Company insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Empire Company Profile

Empire Co Ltd key businesses are food retailing, investments, and other operations. The food retailing division operates through Empire’s subsidiary Sobeys and represents nearly all of the company’s income. This segment owns, affiliates, or franchises more than 1,500 stores in 10 provinces, under retail banners including Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, Lawton’s Drug Stores, and multiple retail fuel locations.