Man Group plc Sells 42,992 Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Man Group plc lowered its stake in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 60.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,551 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 42,992 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc's holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in Graphic Packaging by 55.4% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,105 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Graphic Packaging during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 2,484.0% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,292 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 92.7% during 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 acquiring an additional 689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 58.2% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,493 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Down 0.8%

GPK stock traded down $0.19 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.12. 400,221 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,835,301. The firm's 50 day moving average is $24.07 and its 200 day moving average is $26.37. The firm has a market cap of $6.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Graphic Packaging Holding has a twelve month low of $20.86 and a twelve month high of $30.70.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last issued its 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). The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 25.96% and a net margin of 7.47%. Graphic Packaging's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 5th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Graphic Packaging's payout ratio is presently 21.46%.

Graphic Packaging declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 23.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Graphic Packaging Company 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.