Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) Shares Sold by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 15.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 39,237 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,425 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,853,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Sonoco Products by 152.7% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 950 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 574 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 111.3% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 970 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 90.6% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 953 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 650.7% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Sonoco Products by 474.8% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In other Sonoco Products news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. bought 5,475 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $40.34 per share, with a total value of $220,861.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 29,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,191,643.60. This trade represents a 22.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $41.17 per share, for a total transaction of $823,400.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 502,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,682,367.05. This trade represents a 4.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 27,721 shares of company stock worth $1,144,366. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:SON traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $45.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 670,741 shares, compared to its average volume of 832,789. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.02. Sonoco Products Company has a 1 year low of $39.46 and a 1 year high of $56.77. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.03). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 30.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.64%. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is 137.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SON. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $45.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.75.

About Sonoco Products

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.