Greif (NYSE:GEF) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.33 EPS

Greif (NYSE:GEF) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.72 by ($0.33), Zacks reports. Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.84%.

Greif Trading Down 0.4 %

GEF stock traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $60.29. The company had a trading volume of 117,195 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,085. The stock has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $60.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.13. Greif has a 52 week low of $55.95 and a 52 week high of $73.16.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on GEF shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Greif from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Greif from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Sidoti began coverage on Greif in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.33.

Insider Activity at Greif

In other news, Director B Andrew Rose purchased 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $70.20 per share, with a total value of $245,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $245,700. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Lawrence A. Hilsheimer acquired 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $67.88 per share, for a total transaction of $37,334.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 162,151 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,006,809.88. The trade was a 0.34 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 6,225 shares of company stock worth $431,731 over the last 90 days. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.