Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Packaging Corporation of America hit a new 52-week high of $259 during Wednesday trading, with the stock last trading near $256.66.
• Analysts maintain a favorable outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.57; several firms recently raised their targets to $270–$271.
• The company exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $2.35 versus the $2.31 consensus, while revenue rose 14.7% year over year to $2.49 billion.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $259.00 and last traded at $256.6560, with a volume of 18113 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $257.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $241.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Packaging Corporation of America from $272.00 to $271.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 24th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Packaging Corporation of America from $258.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered Packaging Corporation of America from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Packaging Corporation of America from $269.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Packaging Corporation of America presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $261.57.

Packaging Corporation of America Stock Down 0.5%

The company has a current ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business's fifty day moving average price is $236.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $225.76. The firm has a market cap of $22.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.80.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.49 billion. Packaging Corporation of America had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 18.96%. Packaging Corporation of America's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. Packaging Corporation of America has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.910-2.910 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Corporation of America

In other Packaging Corporation of America news, President Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 12,531 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $3,132,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 218,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at $54,687,750. This represents a 5.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark W. Kowlzan sold 9,266 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.08, for a total value of $2,011,463.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 473,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at $102,811,258.80. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 37,657 shares of company stock worth $9,199,044. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Packaging Corporation of America

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Emerald Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America during the 2nd quarter worth $5,180,000. Westpac Banking Corp bought a new position in Packaging Corporation of America in the 2nd quarter worth $117,000. Korea Investment CORP acquired a new position in Packaging Corporation of America during the 2nd quarter worth $3,190,000. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in Packaging Corporation of America during the 2nd quarter worth $1,143,000. Finally, Callan Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Packaging Corporation of America during the second quarter valued at about $295,000. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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