Raymond James & Associates Increases Stock Position in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 707,969 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 136,342 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $20,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GPK. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 10.0% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,795 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $636,000 after buying an additional 1,976 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the 1st quarter worth approximately $235,000. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 75,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 43.1% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 202,727 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,916,000 after purchasing an additional 61,102 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 33.6% during the first quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 26,313 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $768,000 after purchasing an additional 6,612 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Performance

Shares of GPK opened at $29.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 52-week low of $20.69 and a 52-week high of $30.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.18. The company has a market capitalization of $9.11 billion, a PE ratio of 13.42, a P/E/G ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.83.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.04. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 30.74%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, October 5th. Investors of record on Sunday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael P. Doss sold 49,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.91, for a total value of $1,372,697.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,909,576 shares in the company, valued at $53,296,266.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Michael P. Doss sold 49,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.91, for a total value of $1,372,697.53. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,909,576 shares in the company, valued at $53,296,266.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael P. Doss sold 86,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $2,422,790.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,123,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,555,816.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on GPK shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.87.

Graphic Packaging Company Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.