Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Receives $27.83 Average Price Target from Analysts

Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK – Get Rating) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $27.83.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on GPK shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 9th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Graphic Packaging from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on Graphic Packaging from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 8th.

Insider Activity

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.99, for a total value of $1,439,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 209,250 shares in the company, valued at $5,019,907.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graphic Packaging

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GPK. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 83,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,654,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 16.4% during the second quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 215,550 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,419,000 after acquiring an additional 30,405 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Graphic Packaging during the third quarter valued at $235,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 145.7% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 121,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,398,000 after acquiring an additional 72,030 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Republic Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Republic Investment Management Inc. now owns 35,909 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180 shares in the last quarter. 94.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GPK opened at $23.31 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.96. Graphic Packaging has a twelve month low of $19.08 and a twelve month high of $25.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.42. The company has a 50 day moving average of $23.40 and a 200 day moving average of $22.45.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.01. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 36.32% and a net margin of 5.53%. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Graphic Packaging will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. Graphic Packaging’s payout ratio is 23.81%.

Graphic Packaging Company Profile

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Graphic Packaging Holding Co engages in the provision of paper-based packaging solutions for a variety of products to food, beverage and other consumer products companies. It operates through the following business segments: Paperboard Mills, Americas Paperboard Packaging, Europe Paperboard Packaging, and Corporate and Other.