Brokerages Set Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) PT at $79.33

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $79.33.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Greif from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Greif from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Sidoti started coverage on shares of Greif in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock.

Insider Transactions at Greif

In other news, EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 748 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.21, for a total value of $45,037.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,970,613.09. This represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director B Andrew Rose acquired 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $70.20 per share, for a total transaction of $245,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $245,700. The trade was a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 6,225 shares of company stock worth $431,731 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Greif by 16.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 372,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,381,000 after buying an additional 53,110 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Greif in the third quarter valued at $518,000. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in Greif by 97.0% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 34,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,133,000 after acquiring an additional 16,759 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Greif by 12.3% during the second quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 262,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,061,000 after purchasing an additional 28,669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Greif by 9.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 524,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,874,000 after purchasing an additional 44,473 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Greif Price Performance

NYSE:GEF opened at $57.96 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $65.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.05. The firm has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.82, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.95. Greif has a one year low of $55.95 and a one year high of $73.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 4.81%. Greif’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.56 EPS. Research analysts expect that Greif will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

Greif Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Greif’s payout ratio is currently 47.79%.

About Greif

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.