Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.54

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 25th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of 0.54 per share by the industrial products company on Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th.

Greif has raised its dividend payment by an average of 5.6% per year over the last three years. Greif has a dividend payout ratio of 39.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Greif to earn $5.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.16 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 41.4%.

Greif Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GEF traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $60.57. 130,478 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 153,241. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.53. Greif has a 52-week low of $55.95 and a 52-week high of $73.16. The company has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a PE ratio of 13.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.94.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.84%. The business 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 firm posted $1.56 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Greif will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Greif

In related news, EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 748 shares of Greif stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.21, for a total value of $45,037.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 32,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,970,613.09. This trade represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director B Andrew Rose purchased 3,500 shares of Greif stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $70.20 per share, with a total value of $245,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $245,700. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 6,225 shares of company stock worth $431,731 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GEF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sidoti started coverage on Greif in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price 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. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Greif from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.33.

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.