Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) Announces Earnings Results

Key Points

• EPS beat: Packaging Corporation of America reported earnings of $2.40 per share vs. a $2.17 consensus (+$0.23), with a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 8.61%.
• Stock reaction: Shares fell about 2.9% to $204.48 after the report; the company has a market cap of $18.2 billion and a trailing P/E of 23.86.
• Dividend and insider activity: The firm paid a $1.25 quarterly dividend (annualized $5.00, 2.4% yield; DPR ~58.3%), and President Thomas Hassfurther sold 12,129 shares in February, modestly reducing his stake.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.23, Zacks reports. Packaging Corporation of America had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 8.61%.

Packaging Corporation of America Stock Down 2.9%

NYSE PKG traded down $6.05 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $204.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 944,751 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,034,707. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 3.17 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The company has a market cap of $18.20 billion, a PE ratio of 23.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.90. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $219.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.57. Packaging Corporation of America has a fifty-two week low of $176.45 and a fifty-two week high of $249.51.

Packaging Corporation of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Packaging Corporation of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on PKG shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $234.00 to $226.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $267.00 to $260.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup reduced their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $227.00 to $217.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Zacks Research upgraded Packaging Corporation of America from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Packaging Corporation of America from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $229.00.

Insider Activity at Packaging Corporation of America

In related news, President Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 12,129 shares of Packaging Corporation of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.50, for a total transaction of $2,795,734.50. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 197,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,422,791. The trade was a 5.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PKG. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,185,761 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $868,349,000 after purchasing an additional 54,884 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,478,505 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $717,372,000 after purchasing an additional 83,978 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,816,736 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $580,897,000 after purchasing an additional 73,047 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,792,936 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $575,987,000 after purchasing an additional 453,319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 18.0% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,855,420 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $382,642,000 after purchasing an additional 282,888 shares during the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Packaging Corporation of America

Packaging Corporation of America NYSE: PKG is a leading North American manufacturer of containerboard and corrugated packaging products. The company produces a range of paper-based packaging solutions including linerboard, corrugating medium, corrugated shipping containers, retail-ready packaging and point-of-purchase displays. In addition to core packaging products, Packaging Corporation of America offers packaging design, testing and supply-chain services intended to optimize protection, cost and sustainability for customers.

Headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois, the company operates an integrated network of mills and corrugated manufacturing facilities across the United States and serves customers throughout North America in industries such as e-commerce, grocery and food & beverage, consumer packaged goods and industrial markets.

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