Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Buys 136,965 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,140,471 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 136,965 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 3.20% of Sonoco Products worth $153,411,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SON. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 35.0% in 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 period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter valued at $84,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 311.8% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,713 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 1,297 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Sonoco Products by 33.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,158 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 798 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SON has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lowered 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 downgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James cut their price objective on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.43.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In other Sonoco Products news, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 482,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,237,026.50. This represents a 4.33 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John R. Haley purchased 3,000 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 18,558 shares in the company, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sonoco Products Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE:SON traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $46.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 488,550 shares, compared to its average volume of 749,905. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The company has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $39.46 and a one year high of $61.73. The business's 50-day moving average is $45.66 and its 200-day moving average is $48.42.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is an increase from Sonoco Products's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio is currently 128.48%.

About Sonoco Products

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.