Squarepoint Ops LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Ball Corporation $BALL

Key Points

• Squarepoint Ops LLC cut its Ball holdings by 87.1% in the second quarter, selling 85,165 shares and retaining 12,662 shares worth approximately $790,000. Institutional investors collectively own 86.51% of Ball’s stock.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.69, compared with the stock’s reported price of $60.17.
• Ball reported strong quarterly results, posting adjusted EPS of $1.03 versus the $0.99 estimate and revenue of $4 billion, up 19.7% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% annual yield.

Squarepoint Ops LLC lowered its holdings in Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL - Free Report) by 87.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,662 shares of the company's stock after selling 85,165 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Ball were worth $790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Ball by 4.8% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 72,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,524,000 after purchasing an additional 3,306 shares in the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ball by 4.6% in the second quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 6,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $413,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its position in shares of Ball by 2.8% during the second quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 11,195 shares of the company's stock worth $699,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Ball in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,372,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Ball by 29.8% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 863 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.51% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Ball

In other news, SVP Mandy Glew sold 5,626 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.80, for a total transaction of $358,938.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $459,934.20. This represents a 43.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on BALL. Truist Financial set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Ball in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ball from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Mizuho set a $72.00 price objective on Ball in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ball from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ball from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ball currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.69.

Ball Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:BALL opened at $60.17 on Friday. Ball Corporation has a 52 week low of $44.83 and a 52 week high of $68.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $15.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.95. The business's 50 day moving average is $62.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.65.

Ball (NYSE:BALL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. Ball had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The firm had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.90 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. Ball has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.930- EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ball Corporation will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

Ball Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. Ball's payout ratio is presently 22.66%.

Ball Company Profile

Ball Corporation NYSE: BALL is a global manufacturer of sustainable aluminum packaging products. The company primarily serves the beverage, personal care and household-product industries, producing aluminum beverage cans, bottles, aerosol containers and related packaging solutions. Its products are used by brand owners and manufacturers across a range of consumer markets.

Founded in 1880 as a manufacturer of glass containers, Ball gradually transitioned toward metal packaging and became best known for its aluminum beverage-can business.

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