Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $232.40 and last traded at $231.46, with a volume of 2418 shares. The stock had previously closed at $228.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PKG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $252.00 price objective (up 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 note on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $221.60.

Packaging Co. of America Trading Up 0.0 %

The company has a market cap of $20.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.43 and a quick ratio of 1.71. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $213.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $195.09.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 9.46% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.05 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Packaging Co. of America will post 9 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Packaging Co. of America's dividend payout ratio is 62.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKG. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 15.2% during the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 371 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 460,518 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $99,194,000 after purchasing an additional 35,614 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 16.6% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,059 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,293 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc. bought a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the third quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 22.0% in the third quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,040 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $439,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.