Bunzl’s (BNZL) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Shore Capital

Shore Capital restated their buy rating on shares of Bunzl (LON:BNZL) in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on BNZL. Citigroup raised Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Bunzl from GBX 3,980 ($51.68) to GBX 4,150 ($53.89) and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating and set a GBX 2,800 ($36.36) target price on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of GBX 3,375 ($43.83).

Bunzl Stock Up 3.2 %

Bunzl stock opened at GBX 3,034 ($39.40) on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is GBX 3,213.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 3,383.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00. The stock has a market cap of £9.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45. Bunzl has a twelve month low of GBX 2,884 ($37.45) and a twelve month high of GBX 3,732 ($48.46).

Bunzl (LON:BNZL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.52) earnings per share for the quarter. Bunzl had a return on equity of 16.82% and a net margin of 4.20%. As a group, analysts expect that Bunzl will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of GBX 53.80 ($0.70) per share. This is a boost from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $20.10. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a yield of 1.8%. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bunzl news, insider Frank van Zanten purchased 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of GBX 3,037 ($39.44) per share, for a total transaction of £121,480 ($157,745.75). Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

About Bunzl

Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, cleaning and hygiene supplies, and personal protection equipment to grocery stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores.