Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on PKG. Bank of America increased their price target 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. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $181.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $194.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $190.50.

Packaging Co. of America Price Performance

NYSE:PKG opened at $210.33 on Wednesday. Packaging Co. of America has a 52-week low of $143.82 and a 52-week high of $211.90. The company has a market cap of $18.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.29, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 2.43. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $197.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $187.52.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 18.21% and a net margin of 9.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,057,752.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,012,794.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,057,752.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,012,794.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total transaction of $1,177,680.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,772 shares in the company, valued at $4,077,128.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Packaging Co. of America

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PKG. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 9,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,773,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 2,689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $491,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.4% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,461 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 2.8% in the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,160 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Packaging Co. of America Company 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.