Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ball (NYSE:BALL) Stock Price

Ball (NYSE:BALL) had its price objective lowered by investment analysts at Citigroup from $74.00 to $73.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s target price indicates a potential upside of 15.74% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Ball from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Ball from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Ball from $64.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $66.00 price target on shares of Ball in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ball from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ball presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.93.

Ball Price Performance

NYSE BALL traded up $0.78 on Monday, hitting $63.07. The stock had a trading volume of 685,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,199,484. Ball has a 52-week low of $44.83 and a 52-week high of $68.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $16.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $63.00 and a 200-day moving average of $55.08.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.01. Ball had a net margin of 6.93% and a return on equity of 18.12%. The business had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Ball has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.930- EPS. Equities analysts expect that Ball will post 3.48 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ball

In other Ball news, SVP Kathleen Pitre sold 10,660 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $710,275.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 36,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,450,118.36. This represents a 22.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Fauze Villatoro purchased 1,551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.51 per share, with a total value of $100,055.01. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,778 shares in the company, valued at $888,818.78. This trade represents a 12.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ball

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Ball by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 1,531 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ball by 402.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 83,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,356,000 after buying an additional 67,289 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Ball by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ball in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $453,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ball in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $696,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

About Ball

Ball Corporation is a leading provider of sustainable aluminum packaging solutions and advanced aerospace technologies. Headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, the company serves customers in the beverage, food and aerosol markets through a global network of manufacturing facilities. With an emphasis on sustainability and innovation, Ball designs and produces metal cans, bottles and ends that support recycling and reduce environmental impact.

The company’s packaging segment specializes in beverage cans for soft drinks, beer and energy drinks, as well as metal packaging for food and personal care applications.