Geode Capital Management LLC Has $89.80 Million Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Geode Capital Management LLC lessened its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,837,676 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 26,080 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.87% of Sonoco Products worth $89,795,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Management Group Inc. increased its position in Sonoco Products by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 584,390 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,547,000 after acquiring an additional 126,867 shares during the period. Quilter Plc increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 299,178 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,615,000 after buying an additional 8,895 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 66,754 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,610,000 after buying an additional 5,505 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter worth approximately $15,533,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 528,494 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $25,817,000 after acquiring an additional 20,075 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John R. Haley bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 18,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at $867,772.08. The trade was a 19.28 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the purchase, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SON has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Bank of America lifted 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. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Citigroup reduced their target price 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, StockNews.com upgraded Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $58.50.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.3 %

SON traded down $0.15 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $43.98. 227,505 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 740,447. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 1.91. Sonoco Products has a fifty-two week low of $39.46 and a fifty-two week high of $61.73. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $46.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $49.05. The stock has a market cap of $4.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.60% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.73%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products's payout ratio is presently 126.06%.

Sonoco Products Company 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.