Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 101.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,360 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $2,394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 60.5% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 89.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PKG traded down $0.63 on Friday, hitting $182.56. 1,044,887 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 483,097. Packaging Co. of America has a 1-year low of $127.69 and a 1-year high of $191.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $181.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $176.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.78.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.09. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 18.80%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.33 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Packaging Co. of America news, Director Karen E. Gowland bought 300 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $182.06 per share, with a total value of $54,618.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $166,766.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $187.00 to $191.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $191.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.29.

Packaging Co. of America 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.