Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Receives $78.67 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $78.67.

GEF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective (down from $69.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Greif from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Greif in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Sidoti assumed coverage on Greif in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Greif from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th.

Greif Stock Down 0.2 %

Greif stock opened at $60.32 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $66.56 and a 200-day moving average of $63.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Greif has a twelve month low of $55.95 and a twelve month high of $73.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of 13.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.92.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.23). Greif had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 4.81%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.56 earnings per share. Greif’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Greif will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Greif’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Greif by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 6,953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 1,344 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in shares of Greif by 14.3% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 15,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,986 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Greif in the third quarter valued at approximately $610,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Greif by 97.0% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 34,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,133,000 after purchasing an additional 16,759 shares during the period. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in Greif by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 302,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,958,000 after purchasing an additional 40,494 shares during the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.