KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys Shares of 26,300 Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 26,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,285,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 63.2% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,129,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,181,000 after purchasing an additional 437,128 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 50.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,029,166 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,223,000 after buying an additional 344,658 shares during the period. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,672,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in Sonoco Products by 70.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 559,596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,571,000 after buying an additional 230,709 shares during the period. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in Sonoco Products by 1,736.5% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 148,940 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,137,000 after acquiring an additional 140,830 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In related news, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This represents a 19.28 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total value of $191,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,316.75. The trade was a 19.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SON. Citigroup lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.50.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of Sonoco Products stock opened at $46.70 on Friday. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $44.36 and a one year high of $61.73. The company has a market capitalization of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of 28.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.02.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Research analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 126.06%.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

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.