Greif, Inc. $GEF Shares Acquired by Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Greif, Inc. by 4.7%, owning 1,251,074 shares worth approximately $68.8 million.
• Greif reported $1.19 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, but its revenue of $1.39 billion fell short of the predicted $1.43 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 3.2%.

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Free Report) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,251,074 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 55,948 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. owned about 2.64% of Greif worth $68,797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GEF. OneAscent Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Greif in the first quarter valued at approximately $608,000. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Greif by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,504 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,897,000 after buying an additional 3,820 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Greif by 217.9% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 20,706 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,139,000 after buying an additional 14,193 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Greif by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 596,557 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,805,000 after acquiring an additional 27,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Greif by 14.6% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 107,709 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,923,000 after acquiring an additional 13,690 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.74% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GEF shares. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $77.00 target price (up previously from $71.00) on shares of Greif in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Greif from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research raised Greif to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Greif currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.33.

Greif Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:GEF traded down $0.0440 on Friday, reaching $67.8860. The stock had a trading volume of 290,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 199,573. Greif, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.23 and a 12-month high of $73.16. The company has a market cap of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's fifty day moving average is $66.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.43 billion. Greif had a net margin of 3.74% and a return on equity of 10.21%. Greif's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 17th. Greif's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.85%.

Insider Activity at Greif

In related news, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.12, for a total transaction of $136,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 70,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,814,585.36. This represents a 2.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ole G. Rosgaard sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.75, for a total value of $1,972,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 97,464 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,408,258. This represents a 23.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 94,741 shares of company stock worth $6,448,252. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.