Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Stock Price

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) had its target price lifted by Citigroup from $232.00 to $235.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on PKG. StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $215.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $252.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.67.

Packaging Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of PKG stock opened at $226.84 on Monday. 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 stock has a market cap of $20.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s fifty day moving average is $236.05 and its 200 day moving average is $214.12. Packaging Co. of America has a twelve month low of $159.57 and a twelve month high of $250.82.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.15. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.46% and a return on equity of 19.10%. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.28%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.20, for a total transaction of $1,921,600.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,777,145. This represents a 33.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total value of $3,007,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 43,954 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,576,211.48. This trade represents a 22.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,300 shares of company stock valued at $8,064,152 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Packaging Co. of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 1,462.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 573,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $123,440,000 after purchasing an additional 536,389 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 34.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,027,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $187,596,000 after buying an additional 262,315 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 164.3% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 401,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $73,272,000 after buying an additional 249,483 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 41,151.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 155,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,499,000 after acquiring an additional 155,142 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 218.1% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 207,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,739,000 after acquiring an additional 142,400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

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.