Ancora Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Ancora Advisors LLC grew its stake in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 253.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,176 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,926 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC's holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SON. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,393,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Sonoco Products by 3.6% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital increased its position in Sonoco Products by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 43,056 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,103,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,701 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on SON. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO R. Howard Coker acquired 20,000 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $41.17 per share, for a total transaction of $823,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 502,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,682,367.05. The trade was a 4.15 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John R. Haley bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 50,721 shares of company stock worth $2,206,646. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of SON traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $44.38. The company had a trading volume of 541,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 776,406. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.90, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.68. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $39.46 and a 52-week high of $61.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $45.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Sonoco Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.78%. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio is presently 137.66%.

About Sonoco Products

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.