Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK) Position Decreased by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC reduced its position in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 84.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,570 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 129,921 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $612,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 194,467 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,282,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 836,357 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $22,715,000 after acquiring an additional 68,956 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 32.0% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 70,831 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,924,000 after acquiring an additional 17,183 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter valued at $229,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 92.7% in the fourth 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. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

GPK traded down $0.12 on Friday, reaching $21.91. The company had a trading volume of 1,874,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,605,611. The company has a fifty day moving average of $22.31 and a 200-day moving average of $24.99. The company has a market capitalization of $6.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a one year low of $20.86 and a one year high of $30.70.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last announced 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 company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.15% and a return on equity of 23.68%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.66 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 23.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on GPK shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price target (down from $30.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of Graphic Packaging from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.40.

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.