Legato Capital Management LLC Invests $2.03 Million in Packaging Corporation of America $PKG

Key Points

• Legato Capital Management opened a new position in Packaging Corporation of America, buying 9,862 shares valued at about $2.03 million in the fourth quarter.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on PKG, with Deutsche Bank and UBS both upgrading the stock to buy; the consensus rating is now Moderate Buy with a target price of $236.57.
• The company reported Q1 earnings of $2.40 per share, beating estimates, and also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 per share from $1.25, implying a 2.8% yield.

Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 9,862 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,034,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 105.4% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 115 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America during the third quarter worth $31,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 140.0% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 156 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Packaging Corporation of America by 40.7% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 197 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PKG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $258.00 price target (down from $260.00) on shares of Packaging Corporation of America in a report on Monday, April 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $232.00 to $248.00 in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $225.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $227.00 to $217.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Packaging Corporation of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $236.57.

Packaging Corporation of America Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE PKG opened at $215.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $212.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.96. Packaging Corporation of America has a 1 year low of $184.76 and a 1 year high of $249.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 3.07 and a quick ratio of 1.88.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.45 billion. Packaging Corporation of America had a net margin of 8.04% and a return on equity of 19.27%. The business's revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.330-2.330 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Corporation of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase 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 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Packaging Corporation of America's dividend payout ratio is 60.83%.

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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