Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) to Issue $0.10 Quarterly Dividend

Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 24th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.10 per share by the industrial products company on Wednesday, July 5th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th.

Graphic Packaging has increased its dividend payment by an average of 2.7% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 1 years. Graphic Packaging has a payout ratio of 12.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Graphic Packaging to earn $3.08 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 13.0%.

Graphic Packaging Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE GPK opened at $24.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.43, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 0.97. Graphic Packaging has a 1 year low of $19.08 and a 1 year high of $26.16. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.61.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $2.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.40 billion. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 6.46% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.48 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on GPK shares. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. Seaport Res Ptn reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $29.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $28.78.

Insider Activity at Graphic Packaging

In related news, CFO Stephen R. Scherger sold 160,492 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $4,142,298.52. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 427,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,035,013.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Stephen R. Scherger sold 160,492 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $4,142,298.52. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 427,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,035,013.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 60,000 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.99, for a total transaction of $1,439,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 209,250 shares in the company, valued at $5,019,907.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graphic Packaging

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 103.6% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 1,877 shares during the last quarter. American International Group Inc. grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 21.6% in the second quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 4,414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 13.6% in the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 3,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 1,309.7% during the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 5,075 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 4,715 shares during the period. 94.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Graphic Packaging

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Graphic Packaging Holding Co engages in the provision of paper-based packaging solutions for a variety of products to food, beverage and other consumer products companies. It operates through the following business segments: Paperboard Mills, Americas Paperboard Packaging, Europe Paperboard Packaging, and Corporate and Other.