Bailard Inc. Acquires Shares of 6,100 Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Bailard Inc. bought a new position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Sonoco Products by 1,231.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 694,263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,733,000 after purchasing an additional 642,109 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,787,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $151,474,000 after acquiring an additional 467,431 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Sonoco Products by 436.0% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 283,810 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,425,000 after acquiring an additional 230,862 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Sonoco Products by 17.1% in the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 974,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,982,000 after purchasing an additional 142,592 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 94.1% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 290,660 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,797,000 after purchasing an additional 140,934 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SON has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. TheStreet downgraded Sonoco Products from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.00.

Insider Activity

In other Sonoco Products news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,612,691.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Sonoco Products news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 28,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,612,691.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Russell K. Grissett sold 2,039 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.06, for a total value of $114,306.34. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $672,047.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,076 shares of company stock valued at $749,002 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

SON stock opened at $56.51 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.94. Sonoco Products has a 12-month low of $49.98 and a 12-month high of $63.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.02). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 22.42%. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is currently 42.50%.

Sonoco Products Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.