Insider Selling: Greif (NYSE:GEF) EVP Sells 1,146 Shares

Key Points

• Greif EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 1,146 shares at an average price of $88.60, worth $101,535.60, reducing his ownership by 5.1% to 21,323 shares.
• Greif reported quarterly EPS of $1.61, beating estimates of $1.11, while revenue reached $1.17 billion and increased 3.5% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.62 per share, or $2.48 annually, producing a 2.8% yield; analysts maintain an overall “Hold” rating with an average price target of $83.

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 1,146 shares of Greif stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.60, for a total value of $101,535.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,323 shares in the company, valued at $1,889,217.80. This trade represents a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Greif Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GEF traded down $1.02 during trading on Monday, hitting $87.66. The company had a trading volume of 102,204 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,598. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.29. Greif, Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.75 and a 12 month high of $90.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Greif Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Greif

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GEF. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Greif by 33.3% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Greif by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,682 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position 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 worth $1,397,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Greif by 8.4% in the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 3,902 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Greif by 106.0% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 616 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the period. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on GEF shares. Bank of America downgraded shares of Greif from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Greif from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Greif from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Greif from $74.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $97.00 price target (up from $78.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.00.

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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