Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) Given New $217.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup cut its price target on Packaging Corporation of America to $217 (from $227) and maintained a neutral rating, implying roughly a 2.8% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst coverage is mixed but the consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $230.43, as some firms (Argus) rate it strong-buy while others (UBS, Deutsche Bank) are neutral/hold.
• PKG’s latest quarter missed expectations—EPS $2.32 vs. $2.41 expected and revenue $2.36B vs. $2.43B—and the company set Q1 2026 guidance around $2.20 EPS; the stock recently traded near $211 with a market cap of about $18.8B and a P/E of ~24.6.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by analysts at Citigroup from $227.00 to $217.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the industrial products company's stock. Citigroup's target price would indicate a potential upside of 2.80% from the stock's previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Argus raised shares of Packaging Corporation of America to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Packaging Corporation of America in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $225.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $230.43.

Packaging Corporation of America Stock Performance

PKG stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $211.09. 303,414 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,044,743. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $222.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $212.81. The company has a current ratio of 3.17, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.79 billion, a PE ratio of 24.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.90. Packaging Corporation of America has a 1-year low of $176.45 and a 1-year high of $249.51.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.41 by ($0.09). Packaging Corporation of America had a return on equity of 19.22% and a net margin of 8.61%.The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.20 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions 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 that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.50, for a total value of $2,795,734.50. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 197,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,422,791. This trade represents a 5.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Packaging Corporation of America

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 20,118 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,549 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its holdings in Packaging Corporation of America by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,539 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $318,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Packaging Corporation of America by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,638 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Packaging Corporation of America in the fourth quarter valued at $2,364,000. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Packaging Corporation of America by 201.8% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 202,886 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $41,842,000 after purchasing an additional 135,650 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.78% of the company's stock.

Packaging Corporation of America Company Profile

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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