Essential Planning LLC. Takes Position in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Essential Planning LLC. bought a new stake in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 288,340 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,341,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GPK. Synergy Asset Management LLC increased its stake 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 period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,021,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,734,000 after acquiring an additional 13,175 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,610,233 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $313,957,000 after acquiring an additional 787,266 shares in the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Graphic Packaging during the 4th quarter worth about $51,642,000. Finally, Advocate Group LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Advocate Group LLC now owns 226,399 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,149,000 after acquiring an additional 28,703 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Stock Down 0.3 %

GPK stock opened at $27.48 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.02 and a 200 day moving average of $28.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 52 week low of $25.13 and a 52 week high of $30.70.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.15 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 25.96% and a net margin of 7.47%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.75 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Graphic Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on GPK. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $36.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $24.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.70.

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.