Dark Forest Capital Management LP Makes New $273,000 Investment in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,388 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $273,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $969,000. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sonoco Products by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. now owns 266,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,863,000 after acquiring an additional 41,006 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Sonoco Products by 6.9% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,363,937 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $78,890,000 after acquiring an additional 88,407 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP raised its position in Sonoco Products by 49.7% during the fourth quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 97,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,465,000 after acquiring an additional 32,460 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 49.3% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 123,974 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,171,000 after purchasing an additional 40,927 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Trading Down 0.2 %

SON opened at $54.21 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.21. Sonoco Products has a 1-year low of $48.22 and a 1-year high of $61.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.02. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 5.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is currently 52.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $64.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Sonoco Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut Sonoco Products from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on Sonoco Products in a report on Friday, July 19th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.00.

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.