Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $16.84 Million in Sealed Air Co. (NYSE:SEE)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sealed Air Co. (NYSE:SEE) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 497,823 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,841,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.34% of Sealed Air at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sealed Air by 139.4% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Sealed Air during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Sealed Air by 218.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 907 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Sealed Air by 148.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,530 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Sealed Air by 98.4% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,569 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 778 shares during the last quarter. 94.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sealed Air Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SEE opened at $30.19 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $33.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.68. Sealed Air Co. has a twelve month low of $29.33 and a twelve month high of $41.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10 and a beta of 1.32.

Sealed Air (NYSE:SEE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.08. Sealed Air had a net margin of 7.34% and a return on equity of 74.21%. The firm had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Sealed Air Co. will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Sealed Air Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Sealed Air’s payout ratio is 44.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Henry R. Keizer acquired 1,120 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.00 per share, with a total value of $33,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 35,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,050,000. This represents a 3.31 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SEE. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Sealed Air from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Sealed Air from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Sealed Air from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sealed Air from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Sealed Air in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.25.

About Sealed Air

Sealed Air Corporation provides packaging solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. It operates through two segments, Food and Protective. The Food segment offers integrated packaging materials and automation equipment solutions to provide food safety, shelf life extension, reduce food waste, automate processes, and optimize total cost for food processors in the fresh red meat, smoked and processed meats, poultry, seafood, plant-based, fluids and liquids and cheese markets under the CRYOVAC, CRYOVAC Grip & Tear, CRYOVAC Darfresh, LIQUIBOX, Simple Steps, and Optidure brands.