Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Hits New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $219.00 to $242.00. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the stock. Packaging Co. of America traded as high as $221.35 and last traded at $220.73, with a volume of 24362 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $219.98.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on PKG. StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 28th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $203.33.

Insider Activity at Packaging Co. of America

In related news, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,057,752.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,012,794.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Packaging Co. of America news, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total transaction of $1,057,752.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at $5,012,794.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total transaction of $1,177,680.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,077,128.16. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKG. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Asset Dedication LLC increased its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 200.0% during the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the first quarter worth approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a market cap of $19.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.77. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $207.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $192.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.06% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Packaging Co. of America Company Profile

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.