Brokerages Set Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Price Target at $221.60

Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $221.60.

PKG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $252.00 target price (up from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

PKG stock opened at $228.88 on Friday. Packaging Co. of America has a twelve month low of $148.50 and a twelve month high of $232.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market cap of $20.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.77. The business’s fifty day moving average is $213.79 and its 200-day moving average is $195.09.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 9.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is 62.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PKG. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 1.4% during the second quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $704,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Packaging Co. of America by 0.6% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 9,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,773,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 2,689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Packaging Co. of America by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,461 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.