Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Reduces Stock Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lowered its holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Free Report) by 21.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,847 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 21,177 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.08% of Sonoco Products worth $3,705,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SON. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,355 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 4th quarter worth about $84,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Sonoco Products by 311.8% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,713 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 1,297 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the third quarter valued at about $111,000. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.4 %

SON stock traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $46.70. The stock had a trading volume of 521,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 718,962. 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 firm has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a 50-day moving average of $47.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.02. Sonoco Products has a 52-week low of $44.36 and a 52-week high of $61.73.

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Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 126.06%.

Insider Transactions at Sonoco Products

In other news, Director John R. Haley bought 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $46.76 per share, with a total value of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.10 per share, for a total transaction of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,237,026.50. The trade was a 4.33 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on SON. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. 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. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Sonoco Products from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One 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, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.50.

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.