Advocate Group LLC Acquires 23,319 Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK)

Advocate Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 10.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 249,718 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 23,319 shares during the quarter. Advocate Group LLC owned 0.08% of Graphic Packaging worth $6,483,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 55.4% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,105 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 92.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 42.3% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,125 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $24.00 price target for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $28.40.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE GPK traded up $0.03 on Tuesday, reaching $21.58. The company had a trading volume of 2,942,908 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,590,509. The company's fifty day moving average is $22.91 and its 200-day moving average is $25.44. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a 1-year low of $20.86 and a 1-year high of $30.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.88.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.05). Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.15% and a return on equity of 23.68%. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 5th. Investors of record on Sunday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Graphic Packaging's payout ratio is presently 21.46%.

Graphic Packaging announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase up to 23.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Graphic Packaging Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.