Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Shares Bought by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 49.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 886,332 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 292,772 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $43,262,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Sonoco Products by 29.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 94,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,184,000 after purchasing an additional 21,799 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Sonoco Products in the 3rd quarter valued at about $71,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 36.0% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 25,941 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,417,000 after acquiring an additional 6,869 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 110.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 73,501 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,018,000 after acquiring an additional 38,564 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 33.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $154,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Sonoco Products in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sonoco Products has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.43.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

NYSE:SON opened at $44.66 on Friday. 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $45.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.21. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $39.46 and a 52-week high of $61.73. The firm has a market cap of $4.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.07, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. Sonoco Products’s quarterly revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This is an increase from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 128.48%.

Insider Activity

In other Sonoco Products news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. bought 5,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $40.34 per share, with a total value of $220,861.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,191,643.60. This represents a 22.75 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker purchased 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $46.10 per share, for a total transaction of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 482,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,237,026.50. This trade represents a 4.33 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 50,721 shares of company stock worth $2,206,646 over the last 90 days. 0.74% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sonoco Products Company 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.