tru Independence LLC Increases Stake in Graphic Packaging Holding Company $GPK

Key Points

• tru Independence LLC raised its stake in Graphic Packaging Holding Company by 39.1%, now owning 232,979 shares valued at approximately $4.9 million.
• Graphic Packaging Holding Company recently experienced a series of analyst downgrades, with firms like BNP Paribas Exane and Royal Bank of Canada adjusting their ratings and target prices downward.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.11 per share, representing a yield of 2.3% and a payout ratio of 24.86%.

tru Independence LLC raised its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 232,979 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 65,530 shares during the period. Graphic Packaging makes up approximately 1.4% of tru Independence LLC's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. tru Independence LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Graphic Packaging worth $4,909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,556 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 2,080 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 54.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,841 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 2,065 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 17,662 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 2,538 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 21.4% during the 2nd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 107,900 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,281,000 after acquiring an additional 19,000 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group bought a new position in Graphic Packaging during the 2nd quarter valued at about $113,000. Institutional investors own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on GPK shares. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Graphic Packaging from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $26.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Philip R. Martens sold 7,015 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.80, for a total transaction of $152,927.00. Following the sale, the director owned 26,811 shares in the company, valued at $584,479.80. This trade represents a 20.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.72, for a total transaction of $681,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 255,203 shares in the company, valued at $5,798,212.16. This trade represents a 10.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 93,752 shares of company stock worth $2,073,663. 1.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

NYSE GPK opened at $19.09 on Wednesday. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a 12 month low of $19.06 and a 12 month high of $30.70. The stock has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79, a PEG ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 0.76. The company's 50 day moving average is $21.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.02. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 6.18% and a return on equity of 21.13%. The company had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.13 billion. Graphic Packaging has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.900-2.20 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.86%.

Graphic Packaging Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GPK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.