Whittier Trust Co. Boosts Stake in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK - Free Report) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 360,673 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,391 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. owned 0.12% of Graphic Packaging worth $9,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Synergy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Graphic Packaging by 108.6% in the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 64,343 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 33,493 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in Graphic Packaging by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,021,143 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,734,000 after purchasing an additional 13,175 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 8.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,610,233 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $313,957,000 after purchasing an additional 787,266 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,642,000. Finally, Advocate Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Advocate Group LLC now owns 226,399 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,149,000 after buying an additional 28,703 shares during the period. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on GPK shares. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Graphic Packaging from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.37.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

Graphic Packaging stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $25.25. The stock had a trading volume of 2,813,011 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,330,638. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The firm's 50 day moving average is $26.90 and its 200 day moving average is $28.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.81. Graphic Packaging Holding has a one year low of $24.50 and a one year high of $30.70.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.04). Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 25.96% and a net margin of 7.47%. The business had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Graphic Packaging's previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Graphic Packaging's payout ratio is 20.37%.

About Graphic Packaging

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.