EVR Research LP Takes Position in Greif, Inc. $GEF

EVR Research LP bought a new stake in shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 175,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,848,000. Greif accounts for approximately 6.4% of EVR Research LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. EVR Research LP owned about 0.38% of Greif at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GEF. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Greif by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,397,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Greif during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,040,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in Greif during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Greif during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $609,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in Greif by 50.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 6,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 2,072 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on GEF shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded Greif from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Greif from $79.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Greif from $76.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.26, for a total transaction of $130,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 65,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,296,196.32. This represents a 2.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $406,680. 7.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Greif Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of GEF opened at $69.99 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.80. Greif, Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.75 and a 1 year high of $77.14. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 7.27%.The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Greif, Inc. will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This is a positive change from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Greif’s payout ratio is currently 85.82%.

About Greif

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.