Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System lessened its stake in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) by 1.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 331 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter worth approximately $78,203,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,984,000. Invenomic Capital Management LP raised its position in Sonoco Products by 368.6% during the fourth quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 666,430 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,555,000 after acquiring an additional 524,198 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its position in Sonoco Products by 53.4% during the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,272,121 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $62,143,000 after acquiring an additional 442,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,533,000. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In related news, Director John R. Haley acquired 2,246 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $44.57 per share, for a total transaction of $100,104.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 20,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $927,234.28. The trade was a 12.10% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. acquired 5,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $40.34 per share, for a total transaction of $220,861.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 29,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,191,643.60. This trade represents a 22.75% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders acquired 27,721 shares of company stock worth $1,144,366. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SON has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Sonoco Products from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.75.

Sonoco Products Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of SON stock opened at $45.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $45.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.96. Sonoco Products Company has a 1 year low of $39.46 and a 1 year high of $56.77. The company has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 29.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.68.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued 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). Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 21.78% and a net margin of 2.40%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is 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.