Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.43.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of SON opened at $44.38 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.92. Sonoco Products has a 1 year low of $39.46 and a 1 year high of $61.73.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This is a boost from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.78%. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is 137.66%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO R. Howard Coker acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,237,026.50. The trade was a 4.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John R. Haley bought 2,246 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $44.57 per share, for a total transaction of $100,104.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $927,234.28. This trade represents a 12.10 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 50,721 shares of company stock valued at $2,206,646. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonoco Products

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SON. Private Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 584,390 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,547,000 after acquiring an additional 126,867 shares during the last quarter. Quilter Plc raised its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 299,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,615,000 after purchasing an additional 8,895 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 66,754 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,610,000 after purchasing an additional 5,505 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter valued at $15,533,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 528,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,817,000 after buying an additional 20,075 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

About Sonoco Products

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.