KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $1.29 Million in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 26,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Sonoco Products by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,345,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $65,706,000 after buying an additional 43,238 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in Sonoco Products by 460.7% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 11,366 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 9,339 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter valued at about $394,000. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,229 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 39,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO R. Howard Coker purchased 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,237,026.50. This represents a 4.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total value of $191,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at $770,316.75. The trade was a 19.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sonoco Products Trading Up 1.6 %

SON stock traded up $0.73 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $47.97. 753,075 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 833,637. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.73 billion, a PE ratio of 29.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. 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 business's 50 day moving average price is $47.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.94. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $44.35 and a 52-week high of $61.73.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.34%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 126.06%.

Sonoco Products Profile

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.