Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Director B Andrew Rose Purchases 3,500 Shares

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Director B Andrew Rose bought 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $70.20 per share, for a total transaction of $245,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at $245,700. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Greif Stock Performance

GEF stock traded up $0.43 during trading on Monday, hitting $60.75. 74,154 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 171,873. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Greif, Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.95 and a 1 year high of $73.16. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.14. The company has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a PE ratio of 13.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Greif Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 3.56%. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Greif by 3.2% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $326,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Greif by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 3,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Greif by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,049 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Greif by 71.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cadence Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Greif by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter. Cadence Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,460 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GEF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and set a $67.00 price objective (down from $69.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Friday, August 30th. Sidoti assumed coverage on Greif in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 target price on shares of Greif in a report on Monday, August 26th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Greif from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Greif from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Greif has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.67.

About Greif

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.