Saputo (TSE:SAP) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Saputo Inc. (TSE:SAP)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as C$35.95 and last traded at C$35.48, with a volume of 84964 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$34.07.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Desjardins raised their price target on Saputo from C$31.00 to C$36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. TD Securities raised their price objective on shares of Saputo from C$35.00 to C$38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Saputo from C$35.00 to C$37.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. National Bankshares increased their price target on shares of Saputo from C$29.00 to C$35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Saputo from C$27.00 to C$34.00 in a report on Monday, August 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$35.75.

Saputo Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of C$33.87 and a 200-day moving average of C$30.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 51.68, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of C$14.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -101.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.07.

Saputo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This is an increase from Saputo’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Saputo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -223.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Leanne Cutts acquired 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of C$32.93 per share, for a total transaction of C$131,720.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 23,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$773,855. This represents a 20.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. Company insiders own 40.45% of the company’s stock.

Saputo Company Profile

Saputo is a global dairy processor domiciled in Canada (28% of fiscal 2022 sales) with operations in the United States (43%), the U.K. (6%), and other international markets (23%). It sells cheese, cream, fluid milk, and other dairy products. In the retail segment (50% of revenue), its mix of brands include Saputo, Armstrong, Cheer, Cathedral City, and Frylight.