Insider Buying: Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) CEO Acquires 20,000 Shares of Stock

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) CEO R. Howard Coker purchased 20,000 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.10 per share, for a total transaction of $922,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares in the company, valued at $22,237,026.50. This trade represents a 4.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of SON traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $46.51. The stock had a trading volume of 65,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 803,811. Sonoco Products has a 1 year low of $44.35 and a 1 year high of $61.73. 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 stock's 50 day moving average is $47.31 and its 200 day moving average is $50.55. The firm has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a PE ratio of 28.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. As a group, analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.47%. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is 126.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SON. StockNews.com raised shares of Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $58.50.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,393,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in Sonoco Products by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 7,073 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its position in Sonoco Products by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,652 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 43,056 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,103,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,701 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $230,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company's stock.

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.

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