Bunzl (LON:BNZL) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Bunzl plc (LON:BNZL) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as GBX 2,614 and last traded at GBX 2,598, with a volume of 1894924 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2,576.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “hold” rating and issued a GBX 2,350 price objective on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a GBX 2,200 price objective on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a GBX 1,900 price objective on shares of Bunzl in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bunzl currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of GBX 2,338.

Bunzl Trading Up 0.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of £8.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.32. The business’s 50-day moving average is GBX 2,371.52 and its 200 day moving average is GBX 2,218.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 103.81, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Insider Transactions at Bunzl

In related news, insider Frank van Zanten sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 2,394, for a total transaction of £359,100. Also, insider Richard Howes purchased 8,267 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 2,299 per share, for a total transaction of £190,058.33. 0.48% of the stock is currently 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. It also provides food packaging, disposable tableware, guest amenities, catering equipment, agricultural supplies, cleaning and hygiene products, and safety items to hotels, restaurants, contract caterers, food processors, commercial growers, and the leisure sector; and gloves, boots, hard hats, ear and eye protection, and other workwear, as well as cleaning and hygiene supplies, and asset protection products to industrial and construction, and ecommerce sectors.