North West (TSE:NWC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

The North West Company Inc. (TSE:NWC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as C$53.06 and last traded at C$52.89, with a volume of 4593 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$52.73.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NWC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on North West from C$40.00 to C$47.00 in a research note on Friday, September 6th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of North West from C$44.00 to C$56.00 in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, TD Securities increased their price objective on shares of North West from C$52.00 to C$59.00 in a research report on Friday, September 6th.

North West Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of C$48.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$43.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 60.00, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of C$2.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.24, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.64.

North West (TSE:NWC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported C$0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of C$0.71 by C$0.02. The business had revenue of C$646.49 million during the quarter. North West had a net margin of 5.25% and a return on equity of 19.76%. Research analysts predict that The North West Company Inc. will post 3.4924863 EPS for the current fiscal year.

North West Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This is an increase from North West’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. North West’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at North West

In related news, Senior Officer Matthew Johnson sold 1,179 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$52.37, for a total transaction of C$61,744.23. In related news, Senior Officer Matthew Johnson sold 1,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$52.37, for a total value of C$61,744.23. Also, Senior Officer Michael Beaulieu sold 3,522 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$50.78, for a total value of C$178,847.16. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 20,030 shares of company stock worth $1,038,687. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

North West Company Profile

The North West Company Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the retail of food and everyday products and services to rural communities and urban neighborhood markets in northern Canada, rural Alaska, the South Pacific, and the Caribbean. The company operates Northern stores, which offers food, financial services, and general merchandise; NorthMart stores that provides fresh food products, apparel, and health products and services; and Quickstop convenience stores that provides ready-to-eat food products, and fuel and related services.