John R. Haley Buys 2,246 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Stock

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Director John R. Haley bought 2,246 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $44.57 per share, for a total transaction of $100,104.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 20,804 shares in the company, valued at $927,234.28. This represents a 12.10 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 3.2 %

NYSE:SON opened at $44.66 on Friday. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $39.46 and a 52 week high of $61.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $45.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $4.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.03). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 30.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This is a positive change from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.75%. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is currently 128.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Sonoco Products from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Bank of America raised their target price on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sonoco Products has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.43.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Sonoco Products by 15.8% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 131,326 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,204,000 after purchasing an additional 17,871 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 508.1% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 752 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 25.0% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 191,753 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,058,000 after acquiring an additional 38,403 shares during the period. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products in the 1st quarter worth about $372,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 340,301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $16,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,193 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.