Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Stake Lowered by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,615,539 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 106,045 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.18% of Graphic Packaging worth $106,984,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Graphic Packaging by 546.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 46.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Graphic Packaging in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Finally, LGT Group Foundation acquired a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the first quarter worth $134,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of GPK opened at $29.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $29.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60, a P/E/G ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.83. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 12-month low of $21.25 and a 12-month high of $30.70.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial lowered Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $32.00 to $30.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.53.

Insider Activity

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 transaction of $750,841.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,348,943.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging 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.