Retirement Systems of Alabama Acquires 101,363 Shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Free Report) by 318.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 133,169 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 101,363 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.28% of Greif worth $8,735,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Greif during the fourth quarter worth about $2,943,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in Greif by 121.8% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 69,664 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,540,000 after purchasing an additional 38,260 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Greif by 94.6% in the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 78,654 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,159,000 after purchasing an additional 38,229 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Greif by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 402,383 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $26,883,000 after buying an additional 24,230 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versor Investments LP grew its position in shares of Greif by 338.1% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 20,733 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,385,000 after buying an additional 16,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Greif

In other news, CFO Lawrence A. Hilsheimer purchased 14,200 shares of Greif stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $67.60 per share, for a total transaction of $959,920.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 159,076 shares in the company, valued at $10,753,537.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Lawrence A. Hilsheimer purchased 14,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $67.60 per share, with a total value of $959,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 159,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,753,537.60. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Gary R. Martz purchased 1,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $68.37 per share, for a total transaction of $123,544.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 23,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,579,347. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 42,934 shares of company stock valued at $2,864,352 and sold 6,000 shares valued at $384,620. Insiders own 3.07% of the company's stock.

Greif Price Performance

Greif stock traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $62.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 114,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 181,280. Greif, Inc. has a 12 month low of $59.37 and a 12 month high of $76.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $2.96 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.91. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $64.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.60.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.26 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 18.65% and a net margin of 6.53%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.06 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 15th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Greif's dividend payout ratio is 35.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Greif from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Greif in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. They set a "hold" rating and a $71.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.25.

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.