Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on PKG. Citigroup upped their target price on Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of 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, December 18th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $252.00 price target (up from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.33.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of Packaging Co. of America stock opened at $228.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.67, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.77. Packaging Co. of America has a 52 week low of $159.57 and a 52 week high of $250.82. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $235.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.60.

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

Insider Activity

In other Packaging Co. of America news, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total transaction of $3,007,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,576,211.48. This trade represents a 22.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Joseph Vaughn sold 2,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.89, for a total transaction of $563,247.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,252,253.33. This represents a 20.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,300 shares of company stock worth $8,064,152 over the last three months. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Packaging Co. of America

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in Packaging Co. of America in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 234.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 200.0% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Packaging Co. of America during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 44.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 269 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

About Packaging Co. of America

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.