Vestcor Inc Reduces Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Vestcor Inc trimmed its holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 27.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,799 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 63.2% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,129,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,181,000 after buying an additional 437,128 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,029,166 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,223,000 after acquiring an additional 344,658 shares during the period. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,672,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 70.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 559,596 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,571,000 after purchasing an additional 230,709 shares during the period. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in Sonoco Products by 1,736.5% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 148,940 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,137,000 after purchasing an additional 140,830 shares during the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE SON opened at $47.17 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.49. Sonoco Products has a twelve month low of $44.36 and a twelve month high of $61.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a PE ratio of 28.59, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.41%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of Sonoco Products 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 transaction, the director now owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,316.75. This trade represents a 19.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.10 per share, for a total transaction of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 482,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,237,026.50. This trade represents a 4.33 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SON. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. 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 target price on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.50.

Sonoco Products Company 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.