Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Shares Break Below Fifty Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Sonoco shares fell below their 50-day moving average, trading as low as $48.57 and last at $48.67, versus the average of $49.49.
• Analyst views are mixed: the consensus rating is Hold with a $57.38 price target; recent changes included lower targets from Truist and Citigroup and downgrades from Weiss Ratings and Zacks Research.
• Sonoco missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with EPS of $1.67 versus $1.74 expected and revenue down 4.2% year over year. The company declared a $0.54 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 4.4% yield.

Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) shares crossed below its 50 day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $49.49 and traded as low as $48.57. Sonoco Products shares last traded at $48.6740, with a volume of 902,642 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Sonoco Products from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Monday, October 26th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $63.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.38.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 1.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.18. The firm's 50-day moving average is $49.49 and its 200 day moving average is $52.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of -21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.37.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The industrial products company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.07). Sonoco Products had a negative net margin of 3.08% and a positive return on equity of 16.40%. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.92 earnings per share. Sonoco Products's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -93.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Sonoco Products by 271.9% during the 3rd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 824 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Sonoco Products by 34.7% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,778 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional acquired a new position in shares of Sonoco Products in the third quarter worth $98,000. Hilltop National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 49.7% in the second quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 1,777 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Sonoco Products in the second quarter worth $111,000. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sonoco Products

Sonoco Products Company is a global packaging manufacturer founded in 1899 and headquartered in Hartsville, South Carolina. It develops packaging and related services for customers in industries including food, consumer goods, health care and manufacturing. Its products include metal and paper containers, flexible packaging, industrial paper-based packaging and protective packaging. Sonoco also provides packaging-related services, such as supply-chain and graphics management. The company serves customers worldwide through operations in multiple regions, including North America, Europe and Asia.

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