Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 455,400 Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB decreased its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 10.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,738,152 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 455,400 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 1.25% of Graphic Packaging worth $101,528,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GPK. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 2,484.0% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,242 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Graphic Packaging by 58.2% during 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 period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging during the third quarter worth $73,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Performance

Graphic Packaging stock opened at $27.04 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $27.32 and a 200-day moving average of $28.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 1 year low of $23.47 and a 1 year high of $30.70. The company has a market capitalization of $8.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Graphic Packaging Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This is a boost from Graphic Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.37%.

Insider Transactions at Graphic Packaging

In other Graphic Packaging news, CAO Charles D. Lischer sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total transaction of $355,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 49,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,022.85. This represents a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GPK. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.70.

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.