Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Shares of Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $75.50.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price 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 reduced their price objective on Greif from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Greif from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company 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 research report on Monday, January 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Greif

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

Institutional Trading of Greif

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Avior Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Greif during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Greif by 104.9% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 838 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Greif during the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Greif by 28.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,444 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $149,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Greif during the 4th quarter worth approximately $207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.74% of the company's stock.

Greif Price Performance

Shares of Greif stock traded up $0.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $52.99. 37,678 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 170,364. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $55.23 and a 200 day moving average of $60.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 11.72, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.91. Greif has a fifty-two week low of $48.23 and a fifty-two week high of $73.16.

Greif (NYSE:GEF - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 4.81%. On average, analysts predict that Greif will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. Greif's payout ratio is currently 61.71%.

Greif Company 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.