Metro (TSE:MRU) Stock Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Metro Inc. (TSE:MRU) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$89.14 and traded as high as C$95.25. Metro shares last traded at C$94.90, with a volume of 312,663 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Metro from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Metro from C$98.00 to C$99.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Metro from C$98.00 to C$100.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Metro from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from C$92.00 to C$96.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Desjardins increased their price target on Metro from C$85.00 to C$95.00 in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of C$93.56.

Metro Stock Up 1.2 %

The stock’s 50-day moving average is C$92.63 and its 200-day moving average is C$89.14. The stock has a market cap of C$20.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 0.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 62.29.

Metro Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. This is an increase from Metro’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. Metro’s dividend payout ratio is 30.93%.

About Metro

Metro Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer, franchisor, distributor, and manufacturer in the food and pharmaceutical sectors in Canada. The company operates supermarkets, discount, neighborhood, and specialty stores that provide fresh and grocery products, baked goods, prepared food products, meats, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, frozen food products, bakery products, delicatessen items, and pastries.