Sonoco Products Company $SON Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Sonoco Products Company by 5.2%, selling 582,111 shares and currently owning around 10.69% of the company.
• Sonoco Products recently reported earnings per share of $1.37, missing the consensus estimate by $0.07, while their revenue increased by 17.7% year-over-year.
• The company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.53 on September 10th, yielding 4.6% annually with a payout ratio of 37.99%.

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its position in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,546,614 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 582,111 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 10.69% of Sonoco Products worth $498,222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 508.1% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 900 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 752 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake 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 during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings 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. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its stake 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 valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 152.0% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,071 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on SON shares. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price objective for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.63.

Sonoco Products Stock Up 1.8%

NYSE:SON traded up $0.81 on Tuesday, reaching $46.29. 218,007 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 855,707. The company has a market capitalization of $4.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.30, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.69. Sonoco Products Company has a 12 month low of $39.46 and a 12 month high of $56.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $45.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.72.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.46% and a net margin of 8.35%. The business's revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is presently 37.99%.

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.