Bailard Inc. Buys Shares of 6,100 Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Bailard Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 6,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SON. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. M&R Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 298.3% in the 4th quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Finally, GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter worth $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Sonoco Products stock opened at $56.51 on Monday. Sonoco Products has a fifty-two week low of $49.98 and a fifty-two week high of $63.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.76. The company has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.94.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 22.42% and a net margin of 7.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.27 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is presently 42.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on SON. TheStreet lowered shares of Sonoco Products from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In other news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total transaction of $30,630.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,612,691.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares in the company, valued at $1,612,691.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total value of $604,065.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,123.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,076 shares of company stock valued at $749,002 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.