Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $56.13.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SON. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sonoco Products from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday.

Sonoco Products Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of Sonoco Products stock opened at $46.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.56 billion, a PE ratio of 30.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company's fifty day moving average price is $45.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.09. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $39.46 and a 52-week high of $56.77.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 30.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This is an increase from Sonoco Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.58%. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio is presently 137.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In other Sonoco Products news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. bought 5,475 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $40.34 per share, for a total transaction of $220,861.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 29,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,191,643.60. This trade represents a 22.75% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $41.17 per share, for a total transaction of $823,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 502,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,682,367.05. This trade represents a 4.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 27,721 shares of company stock worth $1,144,366. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,669 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 14,791 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $699,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 9,304 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $440,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 43,056 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,103,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IVC Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,542 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.

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