Woodline Partners LP Grows Stock Holdings in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 25.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,428 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,086 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $12,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Packaging Co. of America by 1,033.3% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 204 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the fourth quarter valued at $68,000. 89.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on PKG shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $265.00 to $238.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $180.00 target price (down from $205.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.60.

Packaging Co. of America Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE PKG opened at $190.96 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.85. Packaging Co. of America has a 52-week low of $172.72 and a 52-week high of $250.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $189.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.12 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 19.67%. Equities research analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 10.44 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.30%.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America engages in the production of container products. It operates through the following segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers a variety of corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers. The Paper segment manufactures and sells a range of papers, including communication-based papers, and pressure sensitive papers.