California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 5,034 Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

California State Teachers Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 4.0% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 120,680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,034 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $22,903,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FIL Ltd increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,210,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $360,031,000 after buying an additional 55,000 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,182,797 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $192,689,000 after buying an additional 27,974 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth approximately $163,314,000. Boston Partners increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 968,816 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $157,836,000 after buying an additional 162,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 0.7% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 874,497 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $165,962,000 after buying an additional 5,842 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on PKG shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $181.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. BNP Paribas downgraded Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $215.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.50.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE:PKG traded down $0.13 during trading on Thursday, reaching $199.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 13,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 623,993. The firm has a market cap of $17.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 2.46. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $185.27 and a 200-day moving average of $179.97. Packaging Co. of America has a 12 month low of $143.82 and a 12 month high of $201.74.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 18.39% and a net margin of 9.06%. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. Research analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is 62.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,057,752.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,012,794.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Packaging Co. of America news, Director Karen E. Gowland purchased 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $182.06 per share, with a total value of $54,618.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $166,766.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles J. Carter sold 5,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.28, for a total value of $1,057,752.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,539 shares in the company, valued at $5,012,794.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Packaging Co. of America Profile

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.