Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Stock Price Down 24.4% – Should You Sell?

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL)’s share price was down 24.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as GBX 2,218 ($29.43) and last traded at GBX 2,327.73 ($30.88). Approximately 5,287,830 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 115% from the average daily volume of 2,465,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 3,078 ($40.84).

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on BNZL. Shore Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bunzl in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Citigroup raised shares of Bunzl to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bunzl has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of GBX 3,375 ($44.78).

Bunzl Price Performance

The company has a market cap of £7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 15.89, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 3,071.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of 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 earnings results on Monday, March 3rd. The company reported GBX 194.30 ($2.58) EPS for the quarter. Bunzl had a return on equity of 16.82% and a net margin of 4.20%. Equities analysts expect that Bunzl plc will post 213.3413462 EPS for the current year.

Bunzl Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bunzl news, insider Richard Howes acquired 8,479 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 2,338 ($31.02) per share, for a total transaction of £198,239.02 ($263,021.12). Also, insider Frank van Zanten bought 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 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.