Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Shares Bought by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 60.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 183 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $30,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 3,429 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $559,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its position in Packaging Co. of America by 1.2% in the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 5,152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $791,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Essex Savings Bank increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 1,643 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 16,793 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,736,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE PKG opened at $178.43 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $182.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.70. The company has a market capitalization of $16.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.80. Packaging Co. of America has a 12-month low of $122.20 and a 12-month high of $191.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 1.77.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 9.25%. Packaging Co. of America’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.50%.

Insider Activity at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, VP Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 14,191 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.80, for a total transaction of $2,466,395.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 183,930 shares in the company, valued at $31,967,034. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total value of $1,825,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,454 shares in the company, valued at $8,478,319.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 14,191 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.80, for a total value of $2,466,395.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 183,930 shares in the company, valued at $31,967,034. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,041 shares of company stock valued at $6,799,177. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on PKG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Packaging Co. of America from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $187.00 to $191.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $183.00 to $181.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $173.57.

Packaging Co. of America Profile

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.