Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Shares Down 26.8% – Time to Sell?

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) shares were down 26.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as GBX 2,230 ($29.59) and last traded at GBX 2,254 ($29.91). Approximately 123,020,359 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 2,949% from the average daily volume of 4,034,913 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,078 ($40.84).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup raised Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Shore Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Monday, March 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of GBX 3,375 ($44.78).

Bunzl Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of £7.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50-day moving average is GBX 3,071.17 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 3,319.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 123.00.

Bunzl (LON:BNZL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.58) EPS for the quarter. Bunzl had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 16.82%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bunzl plc will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of GBX 53.80 ($0.71) per share. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $20.10. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.39%.

Insider Activity

In other Bunzl news, insider Richard Howes purchased 8,479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 2,338 ($31.02) per share, for a total transaction of £198,239.02 ($263,021.12). Also, insider Frank van Zanten acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 3,037 ($40.29) per share, for a total transaction of £121,480 ($161,178.19). 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.