Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Increases Holdings in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Free Report) by 34.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 94,019 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 24,300 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.20% of Greif worth $5,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Greif in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Greif by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,444 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $149,000 after buying an additional 537 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Greif by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,966 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in Greif by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,133 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,077 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Greif by 31.9% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,452 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $333,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Greif news, Director Mark A. Emkes purchased 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $55.89 per share, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,473,523.73. This represents a 7.27 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP David C. Lloyd sold 2,263 shares of Greif stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total value of $125,008.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,580 shares in the company, valued at approximately $418,719.20. This represents a 22.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Greif Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GEF traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $53.41. 100,066 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 170,430. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business's fifty day moving average price is $54.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.77. The company has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. Greif, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.23 and a 12-month high of $73.16.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by ($0.33). Greif had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 4.81%. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Greif's payout ratio is currently 61.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GEF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Greif from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Greif has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.50.

About Greif

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.