Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Acquires New Stake in Packaging Corporation of America $PKG

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC initiated a new position in Packaging Corporation of America, buying 22,713 shares worth about $4.68 million in the fourth quarter.
• Analysts are mostly constructive on PKG: several firms raised or maintained bullish ratings, and the stock now carries a Moderate Buy consensus with a $241.83 average price target.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 per share, while its latest earnings beat EPS estimates at $2.40, though revenue came in slightly below expectations.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 22,713 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $4,684,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PKG. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position 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 worth $484,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC grew its position in Packaging Corporation of America by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 5,362 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,106,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Packaging Corporation of America by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its position in Packaging Corporation of America by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $398,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Packaging Corporation of America by 40.7% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 197 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.78% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on PKG shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $234.00 to $226.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $225.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $256.00 in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $227.00 to $217.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Packaging Corporation of America to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Corporation of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $241.83.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark W. Kowlzan sold 9,266 shares of Packaging Corporation of America stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.08, for a total value of $2,011,463.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 473,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $102,811,258.80. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Packaging Corporation of America Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE PKG opened at $229.92 on Tuesday. Packaging Corporation of America has a twelve month low of $184.76 and a twelve month high of $249.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 3.07. The stock has a market cap of $20.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.97, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $216.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $216.79.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. Packaging Corporation of America had a net margin of 8.04% and a return on equity of 19.27%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.31 EPS. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.330-2.330 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.8 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Corporation of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This is a boost from Packaging Corporation of America's previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Packaging Corporation of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.83%.

Packaging Corporation of America 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.

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