Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK) Shares Acquired by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 23.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 832,035 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 155,805 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale owned about 0.28% of Graphic Packaging worth $21,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GPK. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 55.4% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,105 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 92.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the period. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the first quarter worth $42,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in 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 worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GPK traded up $0.17 during trading on Thursday, hitting $22.61. 3,464,852 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,617,822. The company has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03, a PEG ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.71. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a 1 year low of $20.86 and a 1 year high of $30.70. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $22.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.14 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 23.68% and a net margin of 7.15%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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 was paid on Saturday, July 5th. Investors of record on Sunday, June 15th were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Graphic Packaging's payout ratio is currently 21.46%.

Graphic Packaging declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 23.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GPK has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of Graphic Packaging from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.50.

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.