Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Invests $496,000 in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,120 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $496,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of GEF. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Greif by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 801,429 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $48,983,000 after buying an additional 17,425 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Greif by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 568,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,760,000 after purchasing an additional 44,088 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Greif by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 535,932 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,756,000 after acquiring an additional 11,210 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Greif by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 69,900 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,272,000 after buying an additional 653 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Greif in the fourth quarter worth $4,219,000. Institutional investors own 45.74% of the company's stock.

Greif Trading Up 1.3 %

GEF traded up $0.70 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $52.66. 10,125 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 172,040. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.65, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $56.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.44. Greif, Inc. has a one year low of $48.23 and a one year high of $73.16.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last announced 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). Greif had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 4.81%. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Greif's payout ratio is 61.71%.

Insider Transactions at Greif

In other Greif news, VP David C. Lloyd sold 2,263 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.24, for a total transaction of $125,008.12. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,580 shares in the company, valued at $418,719.20. This trade represents a 22.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark A. Emkes bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $55.89 per share, with a total value of $167,670.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 44,257 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,473,523.73. This represents a 7.27 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GEF shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Greif from $75.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down previously from $71.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Greif from $79.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Greif has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.00.

Greif Profile

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.