Dark Forest Capital Management LP Raises Stock Position in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Free Report) by 48.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,210 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 8,227 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.05% of Greif worth $1,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Greif in the fourth quarter worth $4,219,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Greif by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 568,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,760,000 after buying an additional 44,088 shares in the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Greif in the 4th quarter worth about $2,594,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Greif by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 94,019 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,746,000 after acquiring an additional 24,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Greif during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,180,000. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on GEF. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Greif from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective 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, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Greif

In other news, Director Mark A. Emkes bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $55.89 per share, for a total transaction of $167,670.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 44,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,473,523.73. This trade represents a 7.27 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Frank Calhoun V. Miller purchased 1,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $58.50 per share, for a total transaction of $58,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $58,500. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Greif Price Performance

Shares of Greif stock opened at $52.43 on Wednesday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.23 and a 52-week high of $73.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $55.23 and a 200-day moving average of $60.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.72 by ($0.33). The business had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.26 billion. Greif had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 11.84%. Equities research analysts expect that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.12%. Greif's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.71%.

About Greif

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.

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