Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) Shares Down 14.1% – What’s Next?

Associated British Foods plc (LON:ABF)’s share price traded down 14.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as GBX 1,843.50 and last traded at GBX 1,848.07. 8,163,347 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 9,462,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,151.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ABF. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Associated British Foods to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from GBX 2,130 to GBX 2,000 in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on Associated British Foods from GBX 1,830 to GBX 1,840 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Shore Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Associated British Foods in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Associated British Foods from GBX 2,215 to GBX 2,095 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of GBX 2,058.75.

Associated British Foods Stock Down 13.2%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is GBX 2,149.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 2,150.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.88, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.78. The company has a market cap of £13.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.19, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24.

Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported GBX 174.90 earnings per share for the quarter. Associated British Foods had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 13.07%. On average, research analysts forecast that Associated British Foods plc will post 188.0990415 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Associated British Foods

In other Associated British Foods news, insider Eoin Tonge sold 34,818 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,103, for a total transaction of £732,222.54. Also, insider George G. Weston sold 43,660 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 2,103, for a total transaction of £918,169.80. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Associated British Foods Company Profile

Associated British Foods is a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group with sales of £13.9bn, 128,000 employees and operations in 53 countries across Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia.

Our purpose is to provide safe, nutritious, affordable food, and clothing that is great value for money. With the breadth of our business, our brands and global reach, ABF aims to consistently deliver value to its stakeholders.

Our business is split into five segments: Grocery; Sugar; Agriculture; Ingredients; and Retail.