Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts remain neutral on Greif: Five firms collectively rate the stock “Hold,” with one sell, three hold and one buy rating. The average 12-month price target is $83, below the reported share price of $88.54.
• Greif reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $1.61 versus estimates of $1.11 and revenue of $1.17 billion, up 3.5% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.62 per share, producing a 2.8% annualized yield.
• Insiders have been selling shares: Executives and directors sold 55,087 shares worth approximately $4.66 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.74% of the stock.

Shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the five ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $83.00.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on GEF. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Greif from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Greif from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Greif from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Greif from $74.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a "hold" rating and set a $97.00 price target (up from $78.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Tuesday.

Insider Activity at Greif

In other Greif news, CEO Ole G. Rosgaard sold 40,087 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.68, for a total value of $3,474,741.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 88,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,650,983.56. This trade represents a 31.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mark A. Emkes sold 3,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.04, for a total value of $261,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 43,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,777,536. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 55,087 shares of company stock worth $4,659,541 in the last 90 days. 7.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GEF. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Greif by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 899,137 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $60,872,000 after purchasing an additional 3,793 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Greif by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 837,742 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $56,715,000 after purchasing an additional 79,813 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Greif by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 567,333 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,408,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Greif by 75.5% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 524,603 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,352,000 after buying an additional 225,659 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Greif by 119.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 325,951 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $22,067,000 after buying an additional 177,203 shares during the period. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Greif Trading Down 0.7%

Greif stock opened at $88.54 on Friday. Greif has a one year low of $55.75 and a one year high of $90.57. The company's fifty day moving average price is $74.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.81. The company has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.76, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.50. Greif had a return on equity of 8.09% and a net margin of 7.53%.The business had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Greif will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 17th were given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Greif's previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. Greif's payout ratio is presently 77.74%.

About Greif

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif's longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company's core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.

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