Kentucky Retirement Systems Reduces Stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 5.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,755 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 416 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $1,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FIL Ltd raised its holdings 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 valued at $360,031,000 after acquiring an additional 55,000 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings 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 valued at $192,689,000 after acquiring an additional 27,974 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at about $163,314,000. Boston Partners raised its holdings 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 valued at $157,836,000 after acquiring an additional 162,420 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings 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 valued at $165,962,000 after acquiring an additional 5,842 shares during the period. 89.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Packaging Co. of America Trading Up 2.5 %

PKG traded up $4.76 on Friday, hitting $199.00. The company had a trading volume of 745,432 shares, compared to its average volume of 592,215. The company has a market cap of $17.87 billion, a PE ratio of 24.88, a PEG ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 0.77. Packaging Co. of America has a 12-month low of $143.82 and a 12-month high of $199.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $179.52.

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

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on PKG. Citigroup raised their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $181.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. BNP Paribas cut Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $194.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Packaging Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.50.

Insider Activity at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, Director Karen E. Gowland purchased 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $182.06 per share, for a total transaction of $54,618.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $166,766.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company 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.