Ball (NYSE:BALL) Sets New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Ball Co. (NYSE:BALL) shares hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $53.96 and last traded at $53.97, with a volume of 1214855 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $54.44.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ball from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Mizuho upgraded Ball from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Ball from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Ball in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ball has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.75.

Ball Trading Down 0.8 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $16.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.07, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $59.16 and a 200-day moving average of $62.09.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. Ball had a return on equity of 17.46% and a net margin of 34.05%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ball Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ball Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Ball’s payout ratio is 6.03%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ball

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Ball in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ball in the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Ball by 598.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Ball during the 3rd quarter worth $66,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ball by 334.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 815 shares in the last quarter. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.