EVR Research LP Acquires Shares of 50,000 Sonoco Products Company $SON

EVR Research LP purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 50,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,154,000. Sonoco Products accounts for about 1.3% of EVR Research LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. EVR Research LP owned approximately 0.05% of Sonoco Products at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SON. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the 2nd quarter worth about $53,618,000. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in Sonoco Products by 105.6% in the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 798,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,420,000 after purchasing an additional 410,200 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,569,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 87.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 545,179 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,754,000 after buying an additional 255,055 shares during the period. Finally, SG Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,184,000. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Sonoco Products

In other news, insider Ernest D. Haynes III sold 1,581 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.39, for a total transaction of $89,152.59. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $528,769.03. This represents a 14.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their target price on Sonoco Products from $52.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonoco Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective (up from $54.00) on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.63.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

NYSE SON opened at $52.78 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of 5.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.51. Sonoco Products Company has a 52-week low of $38.65 and a 52-week high of $58.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $51.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.69.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 13.34%.The business’s revenue was up 29.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.05%.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

Sonoco Products Company (NYSE: SON) is a global provider of diversified packaging solutions, serving a wide range of consumer, industrial and retail markets. The company offers a broad portfolio that includes rigid paper and plastic containers, flexible packaging, industrial core and tube products, thermoformed plastics, retail point-of-purchase displays, and packaging supply chain services. Through its solutions, Sonoco helps customers in food and beverage, personal care, chemicals, healthcare, home and garden, and electronics industries address their packaging needs, improve product shelf appeal, and optimize logistics efficiency.

With operations in more than 30 countries across North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa, Sonoco leverages a global network of manufacturing facilities, recycling centers and distribution channels to meet the demands of multinational and regional customers.