Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $173.57.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PKG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $187.00 to $191.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $183.00 to $181.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $172.00 to $202.00 in a research report on Monday, March 4th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total transaction of $1,825,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,478,319.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total transaction of $1,825,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,478,319.54. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 13,850 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.06, for a total transaction of $2,507,681.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 187,647 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,975,365.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,041 shares of company stock valued at $6,799,177. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,160 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 3,429 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $559,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $791,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Essex Savings Bank lifted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 1,643 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $369,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE:PKG opened at $176.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 2.57. The firm has a market cap of $15.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a PEG ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.80. Packaging Co. of America has a 52-week low of $122.20 and a 52-week high of $191.27. The business’s fifty day moving average is $182.28 and its 200 day moving average is $169.10.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.09. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 18.94%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. Packaging Co. of America’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.21 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.50%.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.