Evanson Asset Management LLC Sells 270 Shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON)

Evanson Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) by 8.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,927 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 270 shares during the quarter. Evanson Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $138,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 40.7% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,307 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 3,269 shares during the period. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 23.2% during the first quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 1,516 shares during the period. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 458.1% during the first quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC now owns 37,460 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,770,000 after purchasing an additional 30,748 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Sonoco Products by 2.7% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 11,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Finally, LifeWealth Investments LLC bought a new stake in Sonoco Products during the first quarter worth about $243,000. Institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SON has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sonoco Products from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial dropped their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $62.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonoco Products

In related news, Director Robert R. Hill, Jr. acquired 5,475 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $40.34 per share, with a total value of $220,861.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,540 shares in the company, valued at $1,191,643.60. This represents a 22.75% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John R. Haley acquired 2,246 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $44.57 per share, with a total value of $100,104.22. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $927,234.28. This trade represents a 12.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 27,721 shares of company stock valued at $1,144,366. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE SON opened at $43.08 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.66. The firm has a market cap of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 27.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.70. Sonoco Products Company has a 1 year low of $39.46 and a 1 year high of $56.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products Company will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This is an increase from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 137.66%.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.