Graphic Packaging’s (GPK) “Neutral” Rating Reiterated at Citigroup

Citigroup reissued their neutral rating on shares of Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) in a report issued on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. Citigroup currently has a $30.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $33.00.

GPK has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com cut Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial cut shares of Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $32.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.37.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:GPK opened at $26.71 on Monday. Graphic Packaging has a 52-week low of $23.47 and a 52-week high of $30.70. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $28.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.54. The stock has a market cap of $8.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41, a PEG ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.85.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last announced 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). Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 28.26%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Graphic Packaging will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, January 5th. Investors of record on Sunday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Graphic Packaging’s payout ratio is 17.09%.

Insider Activity at Graphic Packaging

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Michael James Farrell sold 25,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $2,348,943.74. This represents a 24.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Charles D. Lischer sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total transaction of $355,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 49,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,022.85. This trade represents a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graphic Packaging

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 1.1% during the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 32,827 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $860,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 38,064 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 54,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 1.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 26,805 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $793,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 1.2% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 42,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,123,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Company 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.