Ball Corporation $BALL Shares Purchased by Independent Advisor Alliance

Key Points

• Independent Advisor Alliance increased its Ball Corporation stake by 276.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 35,654 shares valued at about $1.89 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: Ball has an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $69.54, and nine analysts currently rate it a Buy.
• Ball recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting $0.94 EPS on revenue of $3.60 billion, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, or $0.80 annually.

Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its stake in Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL - Free Report) by 276.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,654 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 26,184 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance's holdings in Ball were worth $1,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BALL. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Ball by 1,465.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,314,786 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230,791 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc grew its stake in shares of Ball by 141.3% during the third quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,248,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,949,000 after acquiring an additional 731,076 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Ball by 55.1% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,055,094 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,270,000 after acquiring an additional 730,462 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Ball by 14.9% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,651,348 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,521,000 after acquiring an additional 602,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Ball by 13.5% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,828,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $193,003,000 after acquiring an additional 455,089 shares in the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Ball News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ball this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ball Corporation received an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy,” reinforcing a cautiously optimistic view of the stock’s long-term prospects. Ball Corporation NYSE: BALL Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Another market recap noted that analysts are still leaning positive on Ball Corporation even though the shares have lagged the broader market over the past year, which may be supporting sentiment for value-oriented investors. Are Wall Street Analysts Predicting Ball Stock Will Climb or Sink?
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles about World Cup and golf balls mention “ball” in a sports context, but they do not appear to have any direct business impact on Ball Corporation’s packaging operations.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BALL. Raymond James Financial set a $73.00 target price on Ball and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 target price on Ball in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $66.00 target price on Ball in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ball from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ball from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $69.54.

Ball Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BALL opened at $56.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $60.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.91. Ball Corporation has a 52-week low of $44.83 and a 52-week high of $68.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.06.

Ball (NYSE:BALL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.09. Ball had a net margin of 6.86% and a return on equity of 18.69%. The firm had revenue of $3.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share. Ball's revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. Ball has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.930- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ball Corporation will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Ball Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Ball's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.12%.

Insider Transactions at Ball

In other news, SVP Kathleen Pitre sold 10,660 shares of Ball stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $710,275.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 36,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,450,118.36. The trade was a 22.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Fauze Villatoro purchased 1,551 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $64.51 per share, for a total transaction of $100,055.01. Following the acquisition, the senior vice president owned 13,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $888,818.78. The trade was a 12.69% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

About Ball

Ball Corporation is a leading provider of sustainable aluminum packaging solutions and advanced aerospace technologies. Headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, the company serves customers in the beverage, food and aerosol markets through a global network of manufacturing facilities. With an emphasis on sustainability and innovation, Ball designs and produces metal cans, bottles and ends that support recycling and reduce environmental impact.

The company's packaging segment specializes in beverage cans for soft drinks, beer and energy drinks, as well as metal packaging for food and personal care applications.

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