Ball (NYSE:BALL) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Ball Co. (NYSE:BALL) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $51.02 and last traded at $51.48, with a volume of 1082210 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group upgraded shares of Ball from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $62.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Ball from $78.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Ball in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Ball from $69.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of Ball from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ball presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.17.

Ball Stock Down 8.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $15.26 billion, a PE ratio of 3.86, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50 day moving average is $56.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. Ball had a net margin of 34.05% and a return on equity of 17.46%. On average, analysts anticipate that Ball Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Ball Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. Ball’s payout ratio is 6.03%.

Ball declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 24.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Ball

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its position in Ball by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 4,442 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ball by 1.2% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,147,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Ball by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 10,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $556,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ball by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Ball by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 10,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

Ball Company Profile

Ball Corporation supplies aluminum packaging products for the beverage, personal care, and household products industries in the United States, Brazil, and internationally. The company manufactures and sells aluminum beverage containers to fillers of carbonated soft drinks, beer, energy drinks, and other beverages.