Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $233.00.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Packaging Co. of America from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $265.00 price target (down from $282.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $253.00 to $236.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Packaging Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $215.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Packaging Co. of America from $232.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.20, for a total value of $1,921,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 15,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,777,145. The trade was a 33.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Joseph Vaughn sold 2,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.89, for a total transaction of $563,247.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,252,253.33. This represents a 20.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,800 shares of company stock worth $5,056,402. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Packaging Co. of America by 234.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 164 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 150.8% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 163 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Co. of America during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 44.6% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 269 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Performance

NYSE PKG traded down $2.29 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $210.03. 663,725 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 962,289. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.77. Packaging Co. of America has a 52 week low of $163.68 and a 52 week high of $250.82. The business's fifty day moving average price is $230.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $220.85.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The industrial products company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.04). Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 19.67%. Equities research analysts predict that Packaging Co. of America will post 11.15 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th were issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. Packaging Co. of America's payout ratio is currently 55.99%.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America engages in the production of container products. It operates through the following segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers a variety of corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers. The Paper segment manufactures and sells a range of papers, including communication-based papers, and pressure sensitive papers.