Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Acquires 10,710 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 271.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,655 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,710 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SON. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Sonoco Products during the third quarter worth about $71,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 35.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $84,000. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In related news, 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 transaction of $191,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,065 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $770,316.75. This represents a 19.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John R. Haley purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. The trade was a 19.28 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SON has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America raised their target price on 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 cut shares of Sonoco Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.50.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 2.8 %

NYSE SON opened at $47.82 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.67. Sonoco Products has a 1-year low of $44.35 and a 1-year high of $61.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $47.81 and a 200-day moving average of $50.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its quarterly 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). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.35%. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is 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.