Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Director B Andrew Rose Acquires 3,500 Shares

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Director B Andrew Rose purchased 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.20 per share, for a total transaction of $245,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,700. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Greif Stock Performance

Greif stock opened at $60.76 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.92. Greif, Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.95 and a 12 month high of $73.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $66.46 and its 200-day moving average is $63.14.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.41 billion. Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Greif Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Greif’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of Greif by 4.0% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 784,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,126,000 after purchasing an additional 30,192 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Greif by 17.6% during the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 540,330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,053,000 after buying an additional 80,754 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Greif by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 524,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,874,000 after buying an additional 44,473 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Greif by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 372,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $21,381,000 after buying an additional 53,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Greif by 15.5% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 302,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,958,000 after acquiring an additional 40,494 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GEF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $67.00 target price (down previously from $69.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Greif from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Greif from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Greif from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Sidoti initiated coverage on shares of Greif in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Greif has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.67.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.