Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Shares Bought by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 110.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 73,501 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 38,564 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.07% of Sonoco Products worth $4,018,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Sonoco Products in the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Sonoco Products by 821.1% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,879 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,675 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SON has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set a "buy" rating and a $63.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.00.

Sonoco Products Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:SON traded down $0.03 on Wednesday, reaching $49.53. 257,291 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 625,141. The business has a fifty day moving average of $51.28 and a 200-day moving average of $52.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $48.22 and a 52-week high of $61.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.67.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.72 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 19.92%. The firm's revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is presently 71.48%.

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.