Ardagh Metal Packaging (NYSE:AMBP) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. (NYSE:AMBP)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $5.54 and last traded at $5.3180, with a volume of 65655 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $5.06.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AMBP. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ardagh Metal Packaging in a research note on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Ardagh Metal Packaging from $4.75 to $5.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ardagh Metal Packaging from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ardagh Metal Packaging from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ardagh Metal Packaging from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.86.

Ardagh Metal Packaging Stock Down 0.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 87.21, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $4.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.40.

Ardagh Metal Packaging (NYSE:AMBP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.02. Ardagh Metal Packaging had a net margin of 0.68% and a negative return on equity of 27.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.08 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ardagh Metal Packaging S.A. will post 0.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ardagh Metal Packaging Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. Ardagh Metal Packaging’s payout ratio is currently 666.67%.

Institutional Trading of Ardagh Metal Packaging

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Weiss Asset Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ardagh Metal Packaging by 11,276.2% in the 1st quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP now owns 4,516,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,291,000 after acquiring an additional 4,476,638 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Ardagh Metal Packaging by 20.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,637,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,779,000 after purchasing an additional 801,019 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Ardagh Metal Packaging by 28.4% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,269,861 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,243,000 after purchasing an additional 722,974 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Ardagh Metal Packaging by 31.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,894,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,722,000 after purchasing an additional 699,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arini Captial Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Ardagh Metal Packaging in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,109,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.93% of the company’s stock.

About Ardagh Metal Packaging

Ardagh Metal Packaging (NYSE: AMBP) is a global supplier of metal packaging solutions, specializing in the production of steel and aluminum beverage cans, food cans and ends. As a segment of the Ardagh Group, the company supports a broad range of food and beverage customers, including soft drink and craft beer producers, as well as food manufacturers requiring durable, recyclable packaging. Its product portfolio encompasses two‐piece and three‐piece cans, a variety of can ends and closures, and value‐added services such as custom lithography and decorating.

The company operates a network of manufacturing plants across North America and Europe, serving both regional and multinational clients.