Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Outlook for Greif Earnings

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research lowered their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Greif in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, March 19th. Zacks Research analyst M. Das now forecasts that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $1.09 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.15. The consensus estimate for Greif’s current full-year earnings is $4.11 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Greif’s FY2025 earnings at $3.70 EPS.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 4.81%.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on GEF. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. 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 report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 target price (down previously from $71.00) on shares of Greif in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.00.

Greif Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GEF opened at $55.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.40. Greif has a 52-week low of $53.43 and a 52-week high of $73.16.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.92%. Greif’s payout ratio is 61.71%.

Insider Activity at Greif

In other news, Director Frank Calhoun V. Miller acquired 1,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $58.50 per share, with a total value of $58,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,500. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark A. Emkes purchased 3,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $55.89 per share, with a total value of $167,670.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,473,523.73. The trade was a 7.27 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 6,175 shares of company stock valued at $374,867. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Greif

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Avior Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Greif in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Greif in the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Greif by 35.0% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 2,257 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $141,000 after buying an additional 585 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Greif by 28.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,444 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Greif in the third quarter worth about $200,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Greif Company Profile

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.