Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Estimate for Ball Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research lowered Ball’s earnings forecasts, trimming Q3 2026 EPS to $1.05 from $1.06 and FY2026 EPS to $3.97, slightly below the $3.99 consensus estimate. Estimates for FY2027 and FY2028 were also reduced modestly.
• Despite the forecast cuts, analyst sentiment remains favorable: 10 analysts rate Ball a Buy and three rate it a Hold, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $70.85.
• Ball declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, payable September 15 to shareholders of record September 1. The dividend represents $0.80 annually and a yield of approximately 1.2%.

Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL - Free Report) - Analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q3 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Ball in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, July 28th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $1.05 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.06. The consensus estimate for Ball's current full-year earnings is $3.99 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Ball's FY2026 earnings at $3.97 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $4.52 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $5.08 EPS.

BALL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Ball from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ball from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Ball from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup cut their price target on Ball from $73.00 to $72.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ball from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.85.

Ball Stock Performance

Shares of BALL opened at $65.84 on Thursday. Ball has a 1 year low of $44.83 and a 1 year high of $68.29. The company has a market cap of $17.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $59.33 and a 200-day moving average of $60.40.

Ball (NYSE:BALL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.09. Ball had a return on equity of 18.69% and a net margin of 6.86%.The firm had revenue of $3.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. Ball has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.930- EPS.

Ball Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. Ball's payout ratio is 23.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Ball by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,886,681 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,000,429,000 after acquiring an additional 999,690 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Ball by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,225,631 shares of the company's stock worth $382,742,000 after purchasing an additional 266,238 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Ball by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,999,409 shares of the company's stock valued at $354,605,000 after purchasing an additional 340,677 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Ball by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,739,044 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,057,000 after purchasing an additional 922,747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Ball by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,651,348 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,521,000 after purchasing an additional 602,137 shares during the period. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Ball

Here are the key news stories impacting Ball this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ball declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, payable September 15 to shareholders of record on September 1. The dividend implies an annualized yield of approximately 1.2% and provides ongoing income support for investors. Board Declares Quarterly Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Ball is scheduled to report its upcoming quarterly results next week. Wall Street is anticipating earnings growth, with the current full-year consensus at approximately $3.99 per share. Ball Reports Next Week: Wall Street Expects Earnings Growth
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research trimmed its Q3 2026 EPS forecast to $1.05 from $1.06 and lowered its FY2026 estimate to $3.97 from $3.98, slightly below the $3.99 consensus. It also reduced FY2027 EPS to $4.52 from $4.53, FY2028 EPS to $5.08 from $5.09, and Q3 2027 EPS to $1.19 from $1.20. Although the reductions are small, the broad-based cuts can weigh on sentiment by signaling somewhat softer expectations for Ball’s future profitability.

Ball Company Profile

Ball Corporation is a leading provider of sustainable aluminum packaging solutions and advanced aerospace technologies. Headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, the company serves customers in the beverage, food and aerosol markets through a global network of manufacturing facilities. With an emphasis on sustainability and innovation, Ball designs and produces metal cans, bottles and ends that support recycling and reduce environmental impact.

The company's packaging segment specializes in beverage cans for soft drinks, beer and energy drinks, as well as metal packaging for food and personal care applications.

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