Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $221.60.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PKG. StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $252.00 target price (up previously from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Joseph Vaughn sold 2,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.89, for a total value of $563,247.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,197 shares in the company, valued at $2,252,253.33. This represents a 20.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.91, for a total value of $2,571,555.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,175,045.71. The trade was a 54.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 33,300 shares of company stock worth $8,064,152. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Packaging Co. of America

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKG. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 130,628 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,736,000 after buying an additional 5,339 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Packaging Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $836,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,270 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,366,000 after purchasing an additional 2,946 shares in the last quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Packaging Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Finally, Passumpsic Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Packaging Co. of America during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $212,000. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of Packaging Co. of America stock opened at $238.10 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $233.62 and a 200 day moving average of $209.15. Packaging Co. of America has a 12 month low of $159.57 and a 12 month high of $250.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 2.95 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.15. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.10% and a net margin of 9.46%. The company had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.05 EPS. Packaging Co. of America’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is 58.28%.

About Packaging Co. of America

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.