Ingles Markets (NASDAQ:IMKTA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $80.42 and last traded at $78.9990, with a volume of 60433 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $77.44.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on IMKTA. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ingles Markets from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Ingles Markets in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Ingles Markets Stock Up 3.1%

The firm has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $72.09 and a 200-day moving average of $70.21.

Ingles Markets Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 8th were given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 8th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Ingles Markets’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ingles Markets

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Ingles Markets by 15.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 19,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,243,000 after acquiring an additional 2,544 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Ingles Markets by 4.7% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $561,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ingles Markets by 275.9% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 30,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,996,000 after purchasing an additional 22,492 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Ingles Markets by 82.5% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 522 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DMC Group LLC increased its holdings in Ingles Markets by 15.6% in the second quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 4,245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the period. 62.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ingles Markets Company Profile

Ingles Markets, Inc (NASDAQ: IMKTA) is a family‐owned regional supermarket chain headquartered in Asheville, North Carolina. Since its founding in 1963 by Robert P. Ingle Sr., the company has grown to serve communities across the southeastern United States, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia and Alabama. Ingles Markets operates a full-service grocery platform, delivering a broad assortment of fresh produce, meat and seafood, bakery items, deli offerings and dairy products alongside pantry staples and household essentials.

In addition to traditional grocery departments, Ingles Markets provides in-store pharmacy services and fuel centers at many of its locations.