Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $55.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on SNY shares. StockNews.com lowered Sanofi from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. TheStreet downgraded Sanofi from a “b” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Sanofi in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock.

Sanofi Stock Up 1.8 %

SNY opened at $47.15 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a market cap of $119.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.98, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.61. Sanofi has a 52 week low of $42.63 and a 52 week high of $57.82. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.50.

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $11.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.02 billion. Sanofi had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 27.47%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sanofi will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sanofi Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $1.478 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.98%. This is an increase from Sanofi’s previous annual dividend of $1.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. Sanofi’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.47%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sanofi

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Sanofi by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,032,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $648,617,000 after purchasing an additional 245,682 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Sanofi by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,322,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,796,000 after buying an additional 323,968 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sanofi by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,838,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,279,000 after buying an additional 651,756 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Sanofi by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 2,528,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,618,000 after buying an additional 346,563 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Sanofi by 26.9% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,315,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,521,000 after buying an additional 491,498 shares during the period. 10.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sanofi

Sanofi, a healthcare company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of therapeutic solutions in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Pharmaceuticals, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare segments. The company provides specialty care, such as DUPIXENT, neurology and immunology, rare diseases, oncology, and rare blood disorders; medicines for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; and established prescription products.