Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) Hits New 1-Year Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Graphic Packaging's shares fell to a new 52-week low at $17.48 following a price target downgrade by Truist Financial from $23.00 to $20.00.
• A total of eight analysts have given a Hold rating for Graphic Packaging, while two have rated it as a Buy, indicating a cautious sentiment among investors.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.11 per share, yielding 2.5% with a payout ratio of 24.86%.

Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Truist Financial lowered their price target on the stock from $23.00 to $20.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Graphic Packaging traded as low as $17.48 and last traded at $17.53, with a volume of 68347 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.51.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Graphic Packaging from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GPK. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 3.6% in the first quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,535 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 69.9% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,065 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 4.1% in the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 11,770 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 8.4% in the second quarter. Transce3nd LLC now owns 6,443 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 3.0% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 18,379 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Down 0.2%

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $20.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.87 and a beta of 0.74.

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

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.

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