Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 75,076 Shares of Ball Co. (NYSE:BALL)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its position in Ball Co. (NYSE:BALL) by 11.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 554,587 shares of the company’s stock after selling 75,076 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.18% of Ball worth $32,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ball during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covington Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Ball during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ball during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Ball by 112.1% during the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in Ball by 50.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.79% of the company’s stock.

Ball Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE BALL opened at $52.36 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.12. Ball Co. has a 1 year low of $42.81 and a 1 year high of $62.14.

Ball Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 30th. Ball’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BALL shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ball from $55.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 19th. Barclays upped their target price on Ball from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Ball from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Ball from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 18th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group lowered Ball from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $65.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.40.

Insider Transactions at Ball

In other Ball news, VP Deron Goodwin sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.85, for a total transaction of $26,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $634,252.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Deron Goodwin sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.85, for a total transaction of $26,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $634,252.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider David A. Kaufman sold 3,820 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.41, for a total value of $200,206.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $464,405.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Ball Company Profile

Ball Corp. provides metal packaging for beverages, foods, and household products. It operates through the following business segments: Beverage Packaging North and Central America, Beverage Packaging South America, Beverage Packaging Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Aerospace. The Beverage Packaging North and Central America segment includes multi-year supply contracts to fillers of carbonated soft drinks, beer, energy drinks, and other beverages.