JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 280,335 Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,074,774 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 280,335 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $467,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 141,683 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,003,000 after purchasing an additional 14,253 shares in the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 71,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,985,000 after purchasing an additional 34,784 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 23.6% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 94,194 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,206,000 after buying an additional 17,980 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,771 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $849,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,423,715 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,571,821,000 after purchasing an additional 133,575 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE:PKG opened at $195.40 on Friday. Packaging Co. of America has a 1-year low of $169.00 and a 1-year high of $250.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $17.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.88, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $210.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $222.16.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.04). Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 19.67%. Research analysts anticipate that Packaging Co. of America will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is presently 55.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $265.00 target price (down previously from $282.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $215.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $232.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $253.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.00.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America engages in the production of container products. It operates through the following segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers a variety of corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers. The Paper segment manufactures and sells a range of papers, including communication-based papers, and pressure sensitive papers.