Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Shares Purchased by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 539,797 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 41,450 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.18% of Graphic Packaging worth $14,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,043 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 960 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 83,137 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,258,000 after acquiring an additional 25,593 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 374,781 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $10,180,000 after acquiring an additional 37,811 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,082,000. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 101.9% in the fourth quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 30,536 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $829,000 after purchasing an additional 15,408 shares during the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on GPK shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $26.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $26.00 target price (down previously from $30.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $29.17.

Graphic Packaging Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of GPK stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $22.22. 3,589,748 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,540,249. Graphic Packaging Holding has a fifty-two week low of $20.86 and a fifty-two week high of $30.70. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market cap of $6.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.81.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.05). Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 25.96% and a net margin of 7.47%. The business had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 23.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 5th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.46%.

About Graphic Packaging

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.