Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC Purchases 1,230 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,530 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 35.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $71,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter worth approximately $84,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 311.8% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 1,297 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $111,000. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of SON opened at $45.66 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 1.91. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $44.35 and a one year high of $61.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.67, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.31 and a 200 day moving average of $50.55.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 126.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SON. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $58.50.

Insider Transactions at Sonoco Products

In other news, Director John R. Haley bought 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total value of $191,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at $770,316.75. This represents a 19.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products 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.