Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. Cuts Position in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON)

Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 29.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 217,255 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 90,425 shares during the quarter. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of Sonoco Products worth $10,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 90.6% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 953 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 111.3% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 970 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 152.0% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,071 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 650.7% in the fourth 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. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Sonoco Products

In related news, CEO R. Howard Coker purchased 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, 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 ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John R. Haley purchased 2,246 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $44.57 per share, with a total value of $100,104.22. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 20,804 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $927,234.28. The trade was a 12.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 27,721 shares of company stock worth $1,144,366 over the last 90 days. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of Sonoco Products stock traded up $0.38 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $45.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 670,741 shares, compared to its average volume of 767,205. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $45.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.02. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a PE ratio of 29.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.68. Sonoco Products Company has a fifty-two week low of $39.46 and a fifty-two week high of $56.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

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

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.64%. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 137.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on SON shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Sonoco Products from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group started coverage on Sonoco Products in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.75.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

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.