George Weston Limited (TSE:WN) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.82

George Weston Limited (TSE:WN) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, May 7th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.82 per share on Monday, July 1st. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This is an increase from George Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71.

George Weston Price Performance

Shares of TSE:WN traded up C$4.85 during trading on Wednesday, reaching C$192.18. 52,887 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 108,039. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 158.23. George Weston has a 52 week low of C$144.41 and a 52 week high of C$194.02. The firm has a market capitalization of C$25.83 billion, a PE ratio of 17.41, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s 50 day moving average is C$181.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$170.65.

George Weston (TSE:WN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported C$2.51 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of C$14.70 billion during the quarter. George Weston had a return on equity of 19.71% and a net margin of 2.56%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that George Weston will post 11.8758003 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at George Weston

In other George Weston news, Senior Officer Richard Dufresne sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$181.41, for a total value of C$1,814,055.00. In other George Weston news, Director Willard Galen Garfield Weston sold 79,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$144.88, for a total value of C$11,474,503.92. Also, Senior Officer Richard Dufresne sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$181.41, for a total transaction of C$1,814,055.00. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 151,008 shares of company stock worth $24,350,724. 58.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WN. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on George Weston from C$172.00 to C$185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. TD Securities upped their price objective on shares of George Weston from C$226.00 to C$227.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of George Weston from C$200.00 to C$212.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on George Weston from C$216.00 to C$218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, CIBC lifted their target price on George Weston from C$213.00 to C$222.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$208.50.

George Weston Company Profile

George Weston Limited provides food and drug retailing, and financial services in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw) and Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (Choice Properties). The Loblaw segment provides grocery, pharmacy and healthcare services, health and beauty products, apparel, general merchandise, and financial services.