Stella-Jones (TSE:SJ) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average of $77.72

Stella-Jones Inc. (TSE:SJ)’s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$77.72 and traded as high as C$82.58. Stella-Jones shares last traded at C$81.78, with a volume of 81,908 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SJ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Stella-Jones from C$96.00 to C$94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Stella-Jones from C$91.00 to C$94.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Stella-Jones from C$89.00 to C$86.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 1st. CIBC raised their target price on shares of Stella-Jones from C$85.00 to C$86.00 in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Desjardins dropped their target price on shares of Stella-Jones from C$94.00 to C$92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Stella-Jones presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of C$88.71.

Stella-Jones Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of C$4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of C$78.08 and a 200 day moving average of C$77.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 5.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 97.46.

Stella-Jones (TSE:SJ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported C$0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.90 by C$0.08. Stella-Jones had a return on equity of 20.32% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm had revenue of C$688.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$722.50 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Stella-Jones Inc. will post 5.7146953 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stella-Jones Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This is an increase from Stella-Jones’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Stella-Jones’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stella-Jones

In other news, Director Simon Pelletier bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of C$73.15 per share, with a total value of C$146,290.00. In other Stella-Jones news, Director Simon Pelletier purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of C$73.15 per share, for a total transaction of C$146,290.00. Also, Senior Officer Richard Cuddihy purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of C$72.45 per share, for a total transaction of C$36,225.00. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 3,800 shares of company stock valued at $251,922. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Stella-Jones

Stella-Jones Inc produces and sells pressure-treated wood products in Canada and the United States. It operates through two segments, Pressure-Treated Wood; and Logs and Lumber. The company offers railway ties and timbers for short line and commercial railroad operators; and wood utility poles for electrical utilities and telecommunication companies.