KBC Group NV Sells 5,176 Shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

KBC Group NV lessened its stake in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 5.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 90,727 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,176 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned about 0.10% of Packaging Co. of America worth $19,543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,853,417 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $520,920,000 after purchasing an additional 41,903 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 49.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,446,303 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $274,421,000 after purchasing an additional 477,487 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,153,732 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $210,636,000 after acquiring an additional 86,005 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Packaging Co. of America by 34.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,027,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $187,596,000 after purchasing an additional 262,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Packaging Co. of America by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 869,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $164,985,000 after buying an additional 42,465 shares during the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on PKG shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $235.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $252.00 price objective (up from $242.00) on shares of Packaging Co. of America in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Packaging Co. of America from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $199.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Packaging Co. of America presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.60.

Packaging Co. of America Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Packaging Co. of America stock opened at $235.81 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $221.23 and a 200 day moving average of $199.93. Packaging Co. of America has a 1 year low of $148.50 and a 1 year high of $245.00. The firm has a market cap of $21.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.48, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 2.95 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.15. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.46% and a return on equity of 19.10%. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Packaging Co. of America will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Packaging Co. of America Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is currently 58.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Packaging Co. of America

In related news, SVP Donald R. Shirley sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.20, for a total value of $1,921,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 15,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,777,145. This represents a 33.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.62, for a total value of $3,007,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,576,211.48. This trade represents a 22.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

About Packaging Co. of America

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.