Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) Given “Neutral” Rating at Citigroup

Citigroup reiterated their neutral rating on shares of Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $30.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $33.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial lowered Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com downgraded Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graphic Packaging has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.37.

Graphic Packaging Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:GPK opened at $26.44 on Monday. Graphic Packaging has a 12 month low of $23.47 and a 12 month high of $30.70. The business’s 50-day moving average is $28.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.85.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.04). Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 28.26% and a net margin of 7.99%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Graphic Packaging will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Graphic Packaging’s payout ratio is currently 17.09%.

Insider Transactions at Graphic Packaging

In other news, EVP Michael James Farrell sold 25,900 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.99, for a total value of $750,841.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,348,943.74. The trade was a 24.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Charles D. Lischer sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total transaction of $355,800.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 49,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,478,022.85. This trade represents a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Graphic Packaging

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 546.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in Graphic Packaging in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $73,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 57.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,308 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in Graphic Packaging by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 5,130 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153 shares during the period. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.