Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $238.41, but opened at $220.10. Packaging Co. of America shares last traded at $219.30, with a volume of 299,132 shares trading hands.

The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.04). Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.10% and a net margin of 9.46%.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on PKG. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $265.00 price objective (down from $282.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $215.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $253.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $232.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Joseph Vaughn sold 2,300 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,252,253.33. This trade represents a 20.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total transaction of $3,007,750.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,576,211.48. This represents a 22.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,300 shares of company stock worth $8,064,152 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKG. SYM FINANCIAL Corp increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,405 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,586 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $582,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,165 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 15.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,643 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $220.01. The company has a market capitalization of $19.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.97, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.79.

Packaging Co. of America Company Profile

Packaging Corporation of America engages in the production of container products. It operates through the following segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers a variety of corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers. The Paper segment manufactures and sells a range of papers, including communication-based papers, and pressure sensitive papers.