Waverly Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 12,379 Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Waverly Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,379 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,349,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. FIL Ltd grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,210,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $360,031,000 after buying an additional 55,000 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,182,797 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $192,689,000 after buying an additional 27,974 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth approximately $163,314,000. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 968,816 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $157,836,000 after buying an additional 162,420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 0.7% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 874,497 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $165,962,000 after buying an additional 5,842 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Price Performance

NYSE:PKG traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $197.81. 201,310 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 626,398. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $184.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $179.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.76 billion, a PE ratio of 24.80, a PEG ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.77. Packaging Co. of America has a 1-year low of $143.82 and a 1-year high of $199.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 18.39% and a net margin of 9.06%. Packaging Co. of America’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Karen E. Gowland purchased 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $182.06 per share, with a total value of $54,618.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $166,766.96. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 6,000 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,177,680.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,077,128.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Karen E. Gowland bought 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $182.06 per share, for a total transaction of $54,618.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 916 shares in the company, valued at $166,766.96. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PKG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $194.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $181.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.50.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.