Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Shares Acquired by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 11.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,503,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,702,764 shares during the period. Graphic Packaging comprises approximately 0.7% of Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 5.50% of Graphic Packaging worth $441,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 546.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 2,484.0% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Graphic Packaging during the 3rd quarter valued at about $73,000. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Graphic Packaging

In other news, CAO Charles D. Lischer sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total transaction of $355,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 49,849 shares in the company, valued at $1,478,022.85. The trade was a 19.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GPK. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Graphic Packaging from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com lowered Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.70.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GPK opened at $26.48 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.84. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 1-year low of $23.47 and a 1-year high of $30.70. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $27.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.61.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.15 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 25.96% and a net margin of 7.47%. Graphic Packaging’s quarterly revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.51 EPS for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. This is a positive change from Graphic Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Graphic Packaging’s payout ratio is presently 18.52%.

Graphic Packaging Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.