Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) by 2.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 163,309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,380 shares during the quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $4,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPK. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 55.4% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,105 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 92.7% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the period. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Graphic Packaging by 42.3% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,125 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Graphic Packaging during the fourth quarter worth approximately $79,000. 99.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on GPK shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $26.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 price target (down previously from $30.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Graphic Packaging in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.53.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 1.0%

GPK opened at $22.47 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $23.46 and a 200-day moving average of $25.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.74. Graphic Packaging Holding has a 1-year low of $20.86 and a 1-year high of $30.70.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.47% and a return on equity of 25.96%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 5th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.46%.

Graphic Packaging announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 23.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.