Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 741,996 Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company $GPK

Key Points

• Vanguard Group sold 741,996 shares of Graphic Packaging in Q4 (a 2.5% reduction), leaving it with 29,378,349 shares—about 9.95% of the company valued at $442.4M.
• Graphic Packaging beat Q1 estimates (EPS $0.09 vs $0.06; revenue $2.16B) and reaffirmed FY‑2026 guidance with an Adjusted Cash Flow target of $700–$800M, but EPS dropped sharply year‑over‑year and the wide FY EPS range (0.75–1.15) plus recent analyst cuts increase outlook uncertainty.
• CEO Robbert Rietbroek bought 44,278 shares, the stock rose about 12.2%, and the company pays a 4.1% dividend, though Wall Street consensus rates GPK as "Reduce" with an average target of $12.20.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,378,349 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 741,996 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.95% of Graphic Packaging worth $442,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Eminence Capital LP grew its stake in Graphic Packaging by 164.6% in the third quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 7,648,135 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $149,674,000 after purchasing an additional 4,758,098 shares during the last quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 251.3% during the third quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 2,601,576 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,913,000 after buying an additional 1,861,097 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,360,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 673.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 165,245 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,489,000 after buying an additional 143,882 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,244,210 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $24,349,000 after acquiring an additional 167,623 shares in the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graphic Packaging News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Graphic Packaging this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations: reported EPS $0.09 vs. consensus $0.06 and revenue $2.156B vs. ~$2.05B estimated — the upside in both metrics is the proximate reason for the share move. PR Newswire: Q1 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed FY‑2026 guidance and set Adjusted Cash Flow target of $700–$800M, signaling confidence in near‑term cash generation and supporting valuation resilience. PR Newswire: Guidance & Cash Flow
• Positive Sentiment: Operational actions: completed a 90‑day business review, executed cost‑reduction/efficiency initiatives and reduced inventory by $48M; volumes were up ~1% and net sales rose ~2% y/y — these are constructive for margins and working capital. PR Newswire: Operational Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor materials available: slide deck and conference‑call materials were published (useful for modeling and hearing management tone). Seeking Alpha: Earnings Presentation
• Negative Sentiment: Year‑over‑year EPS decline: Q1 EPS of $0.09 compares with $0.51 a year earlier — the sharp y/y drop highlights ongoing margin pressure and one‑time items that investors should model explicitly. Zacks: Q1 Beat with Context
• Negative Sentiment: Wide FY‑2026 EPS range (0.75–1.15) leaves room for uncertainty; the lower bound is below some street estimates, so future guidance cadence and margin recovery will be key catalysts/risks. Kalkine: Guidance & Outlook

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on GPK. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Raymond James Financial cut Graphic Packaging from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Graphic Packaging from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $12.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robbert Rietbroek purchased 44,278 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $11.32 per share, for a total transaction of $501,226.96. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 44,278 shares in the company, valued at $501,226.96. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.41% of the company's stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 12.2%

NYSE:GPK opened at $10.73 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a twelve month low of $8.78 and a twelve month high of $23.76. The company has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 7.25 and a beta of 0.61. The company's 50 day moving average is $10.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.47.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.03. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 16.58%. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Graphic Packaging has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.750-1.150 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 0.84 EPS for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Sunday, March 15th were paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.73%.

Graphic Packaging Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company is a leading provider of sustainable paperboard packaging solutions, offering a broad portfolio of products designed for food, beverage and other consumer goods markets. The company specializes in the manufacture of containerboard, folding cartons and engineered fill materials, as well as beverage packaging systems including paperboard cups, carriers and related components.

Through a network of manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe and Latin America, Graphic Packaging serves a diverse customer base that includes major consumer packaged goods companies, quick-service restaurants and retail chains.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.