Greif (NYSE:GEF) Price Target Lowered to $70.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Price target lowered to $70: Wells Fargo cut its target on Greif to $70 (from $76) and kept an "equal weight" rating, while the consensus analyst rating is "Hold" with an average target of $73.75.
• Quarterly miss and share weakness: Greif reported Q4 EPS of $0.48 versus $0.69 expected and revenue of $994.8M (below the $1.02B estimate), and the stock traded down to $62.27 on the news.
• Insider selling activity: CFO Lawrence Hilsheimer sold 22,778 shares (about $1.64M) and insiders have sold more than they've bought in the last three months (54,211 sold vs. 22,252 bought), with insiders owning 7.7% of the stock.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $76.00 to $70.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price points to a potential upside of 12.41% from the company's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on GEF. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 price target on shares of Greif in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Greif from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Greif from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on Greif from $71.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $73.75.

Greif Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Greif stock traded down $1.10 on Friday, reaching $62.27. 47,783 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 210,789. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.95. Greif has a 52 week low of $48.23 and a 52 week high of $77.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm's 50-day moving average is $71.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.87.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.21). Greif had a net margin of 7.52% and a return on equity of 8.46%. The company had revenue of $994.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.39 EPS. The business's revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Greif will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Greif

In other news, CFO Lawrence A. Hilsheimer sold 22,778 shares of Greif stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.83, for a total transaction of $1,636,143.74. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.54, for a total transaction of $143,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 58,678 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,197,824.12. The trade was a 3.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders purchased 22,252 shares of company stock valued at $1,971,735 and sold 54,211 shares valued at $3,950,846. 7.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Greif

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its holdings in shares of Greif by 8.5% in the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 6,707 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 528 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its holdings in Greif by 92.4% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,338 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $867,000 after buying an additional 6,407 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in Greif by 13.7% during the second quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 136,502 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,871,000 after buying an additional 16,449 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Greif in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,061,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Greif by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,494 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,397,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Greif Company Profile

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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