Flputnam Investment Management Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 165,939 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. owned approximately 0.05% of Graphic Packaging worth $4,090,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 870.7% in the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,291 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,158 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Graphic Packaging during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Graphic Packaging by 39.6% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,476 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Performance

Graphic Packaging stock traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $27.27. 173,626 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,832,072. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $26.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The company has a market cap of $8.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 0.84. Graphic Packaging Holding has a one year low of $20.07 and a one year high of $29.50.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.06. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 35.66% and a net margin of 7.67%. The company had revenue of $2.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, April 1st. StockNews.com lowered Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Citigroup increased their target price on Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Graphic Packaging from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Graphic Packaging has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.44.

Insider Transactions at Graphic Packaging

In other news, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 70,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $1,834,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 205,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,377,052.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Profile

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.