Everence Capital Management Inc. Makes New $698,000 Investment in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,100 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $698,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PKG. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 1,462.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 573,073 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $123,440,000 after buying an additional 536,389 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 34.3% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,027,585 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $187,596,000 after acquiring an additional 262,315 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 164.3% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 401,360 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $73,272,000 after acquiring an additional 249,483 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 41,151.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 155,519 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,499,000 after purchasing an additional 155,142 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Packaging Co. of America by 218.1% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 207,700 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $44,739,000 after purchasing an additional 142,400 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.78% of the company's stock.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE PKG traded up $0.64 on Friday, hitting $225.88. The company had a trading volume of 550,155 shares, compared to its average volume of 698,128. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 2.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Packaging Co. of America has a 12-month low of $159.57 and a 12-month high of $250.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.33, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day moving average of $236.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $213.83.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.09 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a return on equity of 19.10% and a net margin of 9.46%. Packaging Co. of America's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Packaging Co. of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.28%.

Insider Activity at Packaging Co. of America

In other news, Director Paul T. Stecko sold 10,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.91, for a total value of $2,571,555.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,175,045.71. The trade was a 54.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total transaction of $3,007,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,954 shares in the company, valued at $10,576,211.48. The trade was a 22.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,300 shares of company stock valued at $8,064,152. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $252.00 target price (up previously from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $215.00 to $280.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Packaging Co. of America currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $231.33.

Packaging Co. of America Company Profile

Packaging Corporation of America engages in the production of container products. It operates through the following segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers a variety of corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers. The Paper segment manufactures and sells a range of papers, including communication-based papers, and pressure sensitive papers.