Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. reduced its position in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 17.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 141,625 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 30,408 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $3,491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,120,000. Seelaus Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 26,627 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $656,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC bought a new position in shares of Graphic Packaging during the 4th quarter valued at $302,000. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter worth $208,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter worth $2,896,000. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

NYSE GPK traded up $0.33 on Wednesday, reaching $27.41. The company had a trading volume of 2,306,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,805,773. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $27.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.84. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 12 month low of $20.07 and a 12 month high of $29.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.42 billion, a PE ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.40 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 35.66% and a net margin of 7.67%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Graphic Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Graphic Packaging from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.44.

Insider Activity at Graphic Packaging

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total transaction of $1,834,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 205,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,377,052.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Graphic Packaging

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.