Yousif Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Yousif Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 1.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 655 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,698,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SON. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,516 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,393,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Sonoco Products by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 7,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in Sonoco Products by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 43,056 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,103,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Sonoco Products by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,542 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in Sonoco Products by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SON shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Sonoco Products in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James reduced their price target on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Sonoco Products from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sonoco Products news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. purchased 5,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $40.34 per share, for a total transaction of $220,861.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 29,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,191,643.60. The trade was a 22.75% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker acquired 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $41.17 per share, with a total value of $823,400.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 502,365 shares in the company, valued at $20,682,367.05. This represents a 4.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have bought 27,721 shares of company stock worth $1,144,366. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

NYSE SON opened at $44.52 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.91 and a 200 day moving average of $46.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. Sonoco Products has a twelve month low of $39.46 and a twelve month high of $57.81.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.76%. This is a boost from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is presently 137.66%.

Sonoco Products Company 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.