Ball Corporation $BALL Stock: Aberdeen Group plc Grows Position

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group increased its Ball stake by 268% in the third quarter, to 1.24 million shares valued at about $71.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.51% of the company’s stock.
• Ball beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting EPS of $1.10 versus the $1.07 consensus, while revenue rose 23.9% year over year to $4.19 billion.
• Analysts give Ball a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $72.15. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share.

Aberdeen Group plc grew its holdings in Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL - Free Report) by 268.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,244,818 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 906,584 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.47% of Ball worth $71,924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its holdings in Ball by 324.3% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 16,875 shares of the company's stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 12,898 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ball by 64.1% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,454,338 shares of the company's stock worth $81,487,000 after buying an additional 568,356 shares in the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. boosted its stake in shares of Ball by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. now owns 622,612 shares of the company's stock worth $38,456,000 after acquiring an additional 38,006 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its position in Ball by 17.0% during the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,882 shares of the company's stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Ball by 336.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 203,889 shares of the company's stock worth $11,424,000 after buying an additional 157,217 shares during the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ball

In related news, SVP Mandy Glew sold 5,626 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.80, for a total value of $358,938.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $459,934.20. This trade represents a 43.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Ball from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. UBS Group raised their price target on Ball from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Ball from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $76.00 price target (down from $78.00) on shares of Ball in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Ball from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $72.15.

Ball Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of BALL traded up $0.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $65.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,191,090 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,498,071. The company's 50 day moving average price is $61.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.34. Ball Corporation has a 52 week low of $46.65 and a 52 week high of $69.57. The stock has a market cap of $17.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Ball (NYSE:BALL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. Ball had a return on equity of 18.81% and a net margin of 3.52%. The company had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.02 EPS. Ball's quarterly revenue was up 23.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ball Corporation will post 4.00 EPS for the current year.

Ball Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Ball's dividend payout ratio is 40.20%.

Ball Company Profile

Ball Corporation is a global supplier of aluminum packaging, best known for making beverage cans and ends for beverage companies. Its products are used for a range of drinks, including beer, soft drinks, energy drinks and other beverages. The company also offers aluminum cups and other specialty packaging products. Ball serves customers across North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Its packaging operations support beverage brands and producers with manufacturing capabilities in multiple regions.

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