Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) hit a new 52-week high on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $269.00 to $271.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Packaging Corporation of America traded as high as $251.91 and last traded at $246.8870, with a volume of 634820 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $233.90.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $232.00 to $248.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Packaging Corporation of America from $258.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Packaging Corporation of America from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $229.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $246.00 target price (up from $245.00) on shares of Packaging Corporation of America in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $256.43.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Corporation of America

In other Packaging Corporation of America news, CEO Mark W. Kowlzan sold 9,266 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.08, for a total transaction of $2,011,463.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 473,610 shares in the company, valued at $102,811,258.80. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Packaging Corporation of America

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PKG. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Packaging Corporation of America by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 5,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $398,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 40.4% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Corporation of America Stock Up 8.4%

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $227.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $222.70. The firm has a market cap of $22.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 3.07.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.49 billion. Packaging Corporation of America had a return on equity of 18.96% and a net margin of 7.25%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.910-2.910 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Packaging Corporation of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Packaging Corporation of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Packaging Corporation of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.92%.

Packaging Corporation of America Company Profile

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE: PKG) is a leading North American manufacturer of containerboard and corrugated packaging products. The company produces a range of paper-based packaging solutions including linerboard, corrugating medium, corrugated shipping containers, retail-ready packaging and point-of-purchase displays. In addition to core packaging products, Packaging Corporation of America offers packaging design, testing and supply-chain services intended to optimize protection, cost and sustainability for customers.

Headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois, the company operates an integrated network of mills and corrugated manufacturing facilities across the United States and serves customers throughout North America in industries such as e-commerce, grocery and food & beverage, consumer packaged goods and industrial markets.