Ball (NYSE:BALL) Stock Falls 6.8% – Here’s Why

Shares of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) traded down 6.8% on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $63.20 and last traded at $63.44. Approximately 397,162 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 2,355,988 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.07.

Key Stories Impacting Ball

Here are the key news stories impacting Ball this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its target to $77 from $75 and maintained a Buy rating; RBC lifted its target to $77 from $73 and kept an Outperform rating. Both targets imply about 15% upside from $66.94. Citigroup rating RBC rating
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its target to $75 from $72 and rated the stock Outperform. Truist reaffirmed Buy with a $76 target, despite trimming it from $78. Mizuho rating Truist rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 results beat estimates: Ball reported adjusted earnings of $1.10 per share versus $1.07 expected and revenue of $4.19 billion versus $3.78 billion expected. However, coverage noted shares fell in premarket trading, while the earnings-call summary pointed to near-term headwinds alongside growth prospects. Q3 results report Earnings call summary
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS raised its target to $68 from $63 but kept a Neutral rating, signaling limited upside at the cited share price. UBS rating
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan downgraded Ball from Overweight to Neutral and set a $65 target, below the cited share price—one of the clearest bearish signals among recent analyst calls. JPMorgan rating

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on BALL. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Ball from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $76.00 price objective (down from $78.00) on shares of Ball in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ball from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Ball from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Ball from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.15.

Ball Stock Down 0.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $17.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.64, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $61.33 and its 200 day moving average is $61.06.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. Ball had a return on equity of 18.81% and a net margin of 3.52%. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.02 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 23.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ball Corporation will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ball Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. Ball’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Mandy Glew sold 5,626 shares of Ball stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.80, for a total value of $358,938.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $459,934.20. This trade represents a 43.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ball

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Ball during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ball by 135.0% in the 1st quarter. Basecamp Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ball in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ball during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ball by 87.9% during the 3rd quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 592 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

About Ball

Ball Corporation is a global supplier of sustainable aluminum packaging. The company primarily manufactures aluminum beverage cans, bottles and cups used by beer, soft-drink, energy-drink and other beverage companies. Its products are designed to support brand presentation, product protection and recycling throughout the packaging lifecycle.

Ball serves customers across North and South America, Europe and other international markets through a network of manufacturing facilities. The company also develops and markets aluminum packaging products for additional consumer and household applications, including its reusable and recyclable Ball Aluminum Cup.

Founded in 1880 as a manufacturer of glass containers, Ball evolved into a major producer of metal packaging and became particularly known for its aluminum beverage cans.