Amalgamated Bank Reduces Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Amalgamated Bank trimmed its position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 46,857 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 14,713 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank's holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $2,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 49.3% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 123,974 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,171,000 after purchasing an additional 40,927 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,626,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 80.8% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 555,575 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,179,000 after purchasing an additional 248,236 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,419,000. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 140,093 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,103,000 after purchasing an additional 11,245 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

SON remained flat at $50.66 on Monday. 417,891 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 616,004. The stock has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.69. Sonoco Products has a 12-month low of $48.22 and a 12-month high of $61.73. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $53.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.36.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 19.92%. Sonoco Products's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 5.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.11%. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SON has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Sonoco Products from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Friday, July 19th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $58.00.

Sonoco Products 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.