AGF Management Ltd. Invests $2.45 Million in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

AGF Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 50,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,447,000. AGF Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.05% of Sonoco Products at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Sonoco Products by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,863,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $101,842,000 after acquiring an additional 42,701 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 63.2% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,129,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,181,000 after purchasing an additional 437,128 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.9% during the 4th 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,044,620 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $51,030,000 after purchasing an additional 15,454 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. boosted its stake 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 worth $28,547,000 after purchasing an additional 126,867 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup decreased their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sonoco Products news, Director John R. Haley purchased 3,000 shares of the 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 purchase, the director now directly owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the director now directly owns 16,065 shares in the company, valued at $770,316.75. This trade represents a 19.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SON opened at $44.65 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $47.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.70. 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 capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.06, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.61. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $44.35 and a one year high of $61.73.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its 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 firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.66%. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is 126.06%.

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.