Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,989,081 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,341 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.20% of Sonoco Products worth $613,960,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 105.0% in the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 724,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,485,000 after buying an additional 371,096 shares in the last quarter. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. boosted 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 valued at $14,863,000 after purchasing an additional 41,006 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 49.7% during the 4th quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 97,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,465,000 after purchasing an additional 32,460 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 501.1% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 53,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,005,000 after purchasing an additional 44,774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter worth $969,000. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

NYSE:SON opened at $55.60 on Monday. Sonoco Products has a 1-year low of $49.98 and a 1-year high of $61.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average of $58.46 and a 200 day moving average of $57.40. The company has a market capitalization of $5.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.04, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.72.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 20.79%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is 52.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SON. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Sonoco Products from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.33.

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.