Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $6.01 Million Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 123,074 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $6,012,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.13% of Sonoco Products as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 29.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 94,885 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,184,000 after buying an additional 21,799 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Sonoco Products in the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 36.0% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 25,941 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 6,869 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 110.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 73,501 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,018,000 after purchasing an additional 38,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co of the South increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 16,248 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Sonoco Products

In other news, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 18,558 shares in the company, valued at $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $46.10 per share, for a total transaction of $922,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,237,026.50. This represents a 4.33 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on SON shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut Sonoco Products from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.43.

Sonoco Products Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE SON traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $46.91. 413,025 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 749,614. The company has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.42. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $39.46 and a 52 week high of $61.73. 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 (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. Research analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Sonoco Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is currently 128.48%.

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.