Meritage Portfolio Management Invests $2.13 Million in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON)

Meritage Portfolio Management purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 45,138 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,132,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 9.8% during the first quarter. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC now owns 12,961 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $612,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the first quarter valued at approximately $820,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 215.7% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 4,629 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 11.3% during the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 4,005 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 406 shares during the period. Finally, Steph & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 70.0% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 9,154 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 3,770 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company's stock.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.4%

SON traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $46.33. 744,087 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 766,787. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $45.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.12. The company has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.08, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.68. Sonoco Products Company has a fifty-two week low of $39.46 and a fifty-two week high of $56.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 21.78%. Sonoco Products's revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.58%. This is an increase from Sonoco Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio is 137.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SON shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James Financial cut their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sonoco Products from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sonoco Products has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.25.

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.