Empowered Funds LLC Purchases 5,020 Shares of Packaging Corporation of America $PKG

Key Points

• Empowered Funds nearly doubled its stake in Packaging Corporation of America during the first quarter, adding 5,020 shares to own 10,280 shares worth approximately $2.18 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.78% of PKG.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $261.57. Recent target increases include Bank of America at $263 and Deutsche Bank at $256.
• PKG reported quarterly EPS of $2.35, exceeding estimates by $0.04, while revenue rose 14.7% year over year to $2.49 billion. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $1.50, equivalent to a 2.3% annual yield, although insiders have sold more than 30,000 shares over the past 90 days.

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Free Report) by 95.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,020 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Packaging Corporation of America were worth $2,182,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PKG. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 113,026 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,987,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Packaging Corporation of America by 88.0% in the 1st quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,106 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 1,454 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP increased its holdings in Packaging Corporation of America by 407.6% during the 1st quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP now owns 22,654 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,808,000 after purchasing an additional 18,191 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its holdings in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 15.9% during the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 15,937 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,382,000 after buying an additional 2,191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA bought a new position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America during the first quarter worth about $1,464,000. 89.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Packaging Corporation of America from $241.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Packaging Corporation of America from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $242.00 to $263.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $246.00 price target (up from $245.00) on shares of Packaging Corporation of America in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Packaging Corporation of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $256.00 in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Packaging Corporation of America presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $261.57.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 12,531 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $3,132,750.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 218,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,687,750. This represents a 5.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark W. Kowlzan sold 9,266 shares of Packaging Corporation of America stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.08, for a total transaction of $2,011,463.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 473,610 shares in the company, valued at $102,811,258.80. This trade represents a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,594 shares of company stock valued at $7,405,042. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Packaging Corporation of America Price Performance

PKG stock opened at $256.12 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $233.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $224.78. Packaging Corporation of America has a 52-week low of $191.13 and a 52-week high of $258.81. The company has a market capitalization of $22.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.26, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 3.07.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.04. Packaging Corporation of America had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 18.96%. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.48 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.910-2.910 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Corporation of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Packaging Corporation of America's previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Packaging Corporation of America's payout ratio is currently 77.92%.

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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