Wintrust Investments LLC Cuts Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Wintrust Investments LLC lessened its stake in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 53.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 670 shares during the period. Wintrust Investments LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $28,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SON. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in Sonoco Products by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 18,333 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,002,000 after buying an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 37,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,027,000 after acquiring an additional 3,992 shares during the last quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 12,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,164,000. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Sonoco Products Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:SON opened at $45.66 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $47.31 and a 200 day moving average of $50.60. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $44.35 and a 52 week high of $61.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.56%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 126.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 acquisition, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $191,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,065 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $770,316.75. This trade represents a 19.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products 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.