Short Interest in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Decreases By 19.1%

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,230,000 shares, a drop of 19.1% from the October 15th total of 1,520,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 545,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PKG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $252.00 price objective (up from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Packaging Co. of America has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.60.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Packaging Co. of America stock traded up $0.21 on Friday, reaching $235.81. 583,602 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 648,058. Packaging Co. of America has a one year low of $148.50 and a one year high of $245.00. The company has a market capitalization of $21.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.48, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a 50-day moving average of $221.23 and a 200 day moving average of $200.12.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.15. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.10% and a net margin of 9.46%. The company had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.05 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Packaging Co. of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.28%.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Co. of America

In other Packaging Co. of America news, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 8,000 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.20, for a total transaction of $1,921,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,777,145. This trade represents a 33.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of Packaging Co. of America stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total value 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 approximately $10,576,211.48. The trade was a 22.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Packaging Co. of America

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 371 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 1.4% in the second quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $704,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 0.5% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 10,075 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,170,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 0.6% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 9,713 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,773,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 2.1% during the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 2,689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $491,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Packaging Co. of America Company 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.