Vanguard Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,128,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 120,843 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.33% of Sonoco Products worth $543,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 2.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,863,756 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $101,842,000 after buying an additional 42,701 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,345,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $65,706,000 after acquiring an additional 43,238 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Sonoco Products by 63.2% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,129,133 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $55,181,000 after purchasing an additional 437,128 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,107,635 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,108,000 after purchasing an additional 9,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Sonoco Products by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,044,620 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $51,030,000 after purchasing an additional 15,454 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company's stock.

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Sonoco Products Price Performance

SON stock traded down $1.95 during trading on Thursday, hitting $45.93. 1,284,291 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 724,042. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $44.36 and a 52 week high of $61.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is presently 126.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SON has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup lowered their price objective 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. Bank of America increased their target price on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $58.50.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In other news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total value of $191,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,316.75. The trade was a 19.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 18,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This represents a 19.28 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.