Intech Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) by 45.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,049 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 3,779 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Greif were worth $736,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GEF. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Greif by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 524,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,874,000 after purchasing an additional 44,473 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Greif during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,594,000. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Greif by 15.5% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 302,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,958,000 after buying an additional 40,494 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Greif by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 801,429 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $48,983,000 after buying an additional 17,425 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Greif by 97.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 34,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,133,000 after acquiring an additional 16,759 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on GEF shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective (down previously from $71.00) on shares of Greif in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Greif currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Lawrence A. Hilsheimer acquired 1,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were bought at an average price of $69.14 per share, with a total value of $74,325.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 165,426 shares in the company, valued at $11,437,553.64. This trade represents a 0.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark A. Emkes bought 3,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $55.89 per share, with a total value of $167,670.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 44,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,473,523.73. This represents a 7.27 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 5,075 shares of company stock worth $300,496. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Greif Stock Performance

GEF stock opened at $55.16 on Monday. Greif, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.43 and a 1-year high of $73.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $59.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.43. The company has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.20, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.72 by ($0.33). Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.84%. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. Greif’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.71%.

Greif Company 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.