Private Management Group Inc. Sells 1,087 Shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Private Management Group Inc. cut its position in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) by 0.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 200,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,087 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Greif were worth $12,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Greif by 16.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 372,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,381,000 after purchasing an additional 53,110 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in Greif by 12.3% in the second quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 262,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,061,000 after buying an additional 28,669 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Greif in the second quarter valued at approximately $4,012,000. Truist Financial Corp acquired a new position in Greif in the second quarter valued at approximately $452,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Greif by 5.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,151 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,185,000 after buying an additional 886 shares during the period. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Greif Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of GEF stock traded up $0.46 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $62.90. 137,030 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 165,165. The business has a 50 day moving average of $62.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Greif, Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.95 and a 52 week high of $71.36. The company has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 13.67 and a beta of 0.91.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.14). Greif had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 4.99%. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.43 billion. Analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.54 dividend. This is a positive change from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Greif’s payout ratio is presently 46.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective (down from $69.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Greif from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Greif from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Greif from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $88.00 target price on shares of Greif in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $76.00.

Greif Profile

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.