Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL – Get Rating) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is GBX 2,955.83 ($36.02).

A number of equities research analysts have commented on BNZL shares. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a GBX 2,750 ($33.52) price objective on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. Shore Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a report on Monday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a GBX 3,060 ($37.29) target price on shares of Bunzl in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Bunzl to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from GBX 3,250 ($39.61) to GBX 3,375 ($41.13) in a report on Monday, March 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a GBX 2,800 ($34.13) target price on shares of Bunzl in a report on Thursday, January 5th.

Bunzl Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of LON:BNZL opened at GBX 2,975 ($36.26) on Friday. Bunzl has a 52 week low of GBX 2,542 ($30.98) and a 52 week high of GBX 3,249 ($39.60). The company’s 50 day moving average is GBX 2,985.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 2,903.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 118.76. The company has a market cap of £10.05 billion, a PE ratio of 2,125.00, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.46.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 18th will be paid a dividend of GBX 45.40 ($0.55) per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 18th. This represents a yield of 1.51%. This is a boost from Bunzl’s previous dividend of $17.30. Bunzl’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4,500.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Frank van Zanten sold 13,046 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,986 ($36.39), for a total transaction of £389,553.56 ($474,775.82). In other Bunzl news, insider Richard Howes sold 4,909 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 3,002 ($36.59), for a total transaction of £147,368.18 ($179,607.78). Also, insider Frank van Zanten sold 13,046 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 2,986 ($36.39), for a total transaction of £389,553.56 ($474,775.82). 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Bunzl Company Profile

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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.