Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $233.00.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $232.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective 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, January 30th. StockNews.com raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Seaport Res Ptn raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $215.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Packaging Co. of America Trading Up 1.1 %

Packaging Co. of America stock opened at $213.08 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $222.41. The company has a market cap of $19.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.77. Packaging Co. of America has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $250.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 19.67%. Analysts predict that Packaging Co. of America will post 10.44 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.99%.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, SVP Joseph Vaughn sold 2,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.89, for a total transaction of $563,247.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,252,253.33. This represents a 20.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Packaging Co. of America

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 150.8% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 163 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 234.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1,033.3% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 204 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 89.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.