Alliancebernstein L.P. Raises Stock Holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 920.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,176,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 3,767,011 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 1.39% of Graphic Packaging worth $113,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its position in Graphic Packaging by 55.4% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,105 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 92.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 58.2% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

Shares of GPK opened at $26.32 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.19, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.81. Graphic Packaging Holding has a fifty-two week low of $24.50 and a fifty-two week high of $30.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $26.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.98.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.04). Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.47% and a return on equity of 25.96%. The company had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 5th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. This is a positive change from Graphic Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GPK has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 target price (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.37.

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.