Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Receives $221.60 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $231.33.

Several research analysts have weighed in on PKG shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $252.00 price target (up previously from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $215.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 14th.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE PKG opened at $227.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $20.47 billion, a PE ratio of 26.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.77. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $234.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $210.14. Packaging Co. of America has a 12-month low of $159.57 and a 12-month high of $250.82.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.10% and a net margin of 9.46%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.05 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio is 58.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.91, for a total transaction of $2,571,555.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,881 shares in the company, valued at $2,175,045.71. This represents a 54.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total transaction of $3,007,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,954 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,576,211.48. The trade was a 22.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,300 shares of company stock valued at $8,064,152. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Packaging Co. of America

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1,462.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 573,073 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $123,440,000 after purchasing an additional 536,389 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 34.3% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,027,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $187,596,000 after buying an additional 262,315 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Packaging Co. of America by 164.3% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 401,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $73,272,000 after buying an additional 249,483 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 41,151.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 155,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,499,000 after acquiring an additional 155,142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 218.1% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 207,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,739,000 after acquiring an additional 142,400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Company 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.