Arjuna Capital Has $1.57 Million Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Arjuna Capital trimmed its stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 32,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 526 shares during the quarter. Arjuna Capital’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,573,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SON. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the third quarter worth $33,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Sonoco Products in the third quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter valued at $84,000. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Sonoco Products stock opened at $47.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 0.79. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $44.35 and a 52 week high of $61.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $47.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $50.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.35%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.06%.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In other Sonoco Products news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $191,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,316.75. This trade represents a 19.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 18,558 shares in the company, valued at approximately $867,772.08. The trade was a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SON shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.50.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.