Greif (NYSE:GEF) Downgraded by Bank of America to “Underperform”

Bank of America cut shares of Greif (NYSE:GEF) from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $70.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on GEF. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Greif from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Greif from $79.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $73.25.

Greif Price Performance

GEF stock opened at $71.68 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $68.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.76. Greif has a 52-week low of $55.75 and a 52-week high of $77.14.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Greif had a net margin of 7.27% and a return on equity of 7.50%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Greif will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th were given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is 95.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction on Friday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total value of $146,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 63,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,668,672.48. This trade represents a 3.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $412,120 in the last 90 days. 7.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GEF. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Greif by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,397,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Greif in the second quarter valued at $1,040,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in Greif during the 2nd quarter worth about $230,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Greif during the 2nd quarter worth about $609,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Greif by 50.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 6,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $403,000 after acquiring an additional 2,072 shares in the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.