GoalVest Advisory LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,624 shares during the period. GoalVest Advisory LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in Sonoco Products by 2.7% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 8,862 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $445,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in Sonoco Products by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,373 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in Sonoco Products by 1.5% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 19,765 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,002,000 after buying an additional 298 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 2.0% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 15,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Curi RMB Capital LLC lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 2.4% during the third quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 12,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Sonoco Products stock opened at $50.07 on Friday. Sonoco Products has a 12-month low of $48.22 and a 12-month high of $61.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.69. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $53.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.16.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 19.92% and a net margin of 4.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 5.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SON. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Sonoco Products from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Sonoco Products from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.00.

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.