Timothy Bergwall Sells 2,000 Shares of Greif (NYSE:GEF) Stock

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.06, for a total value of $174,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 55,832 shares in the company, valued at $4,860,733.92. This represents a 3.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Timothy Bergwall also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, August 3rd, Timothy Bergwall sold 6,000 shares of Greif stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.26, for a total transaction of $511,560.00.
• On Friday, July 10th, Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of Greif stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total transaction of $146,280.00.
• On Wednesday, June 10th, Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of Greif stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.26, for a total transaction of $130,520.00.

Greif Stock Performance

Shares of GEF opened at $87.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s fifty day moving average is $75.23 and its 200-day moving average is $71.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Greif, Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.75 and a 12 month high of $90.57.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Greif had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 8.09%. Greif’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Greif, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th were given a $0.62 dividend. This is an increase from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 17th. Greif’s payout ratio is presently 77.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GEF shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Greif from $74.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research raised Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $97.00 price target (up from $78.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Greif from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of Greif from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GEF. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Greif by 631.5% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 26,043 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,763,000 after buying an additional 22,483 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its stake in shares of Greif by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 837,742 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,715,000 after acquiring an additional 79,813 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its position in Greif by 91.5% during the fourth quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 18,839 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 9,000 shares during the period. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in Greif during the first quarter worth $871,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Greif during the 1st quarter valued at $1,853,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.74% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Greif

Here are the key news stories impacting Greif this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Greif’s latest quarterly results were well ahead of expectations, with earnings per share of $1.61 versus the $1.11 consensus and revenue of $1.17 billion versus forecasts of $1.12 billion. Revenue also grew 3.5% year over year, supporting the company’s earnings outlook.
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.62 per share from $0.56, providing an annualized payout of $2.48 and a yield of approximately 2.8%.
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo and Truist recently increased their price targets to $90 and $97, respectively, following Greif’s strong results, although both maintained neutral ratings.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains mixed: one analyst rates Greif Buy, three rate it Hold and one rates it Sell. The consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $83, below recent trading levels.
• Neutral Sentiment: Timothy Bergwall, senior vice president, sold 2,000 shares for approximately $174,000, reducing his position by 3.46%. The sale was conducted under a Rule 10b5-1 plan, making it a less significant discretionary signal. Bergwall insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Lawrence Hilsheimer sold a combined 41,754 shares in two transactions for approximately $3.70 million, reducing his direct ownership by roughly 30% and 45% in the respective filings. The size of the sales is the clearest near-term overhang for GEF. SEC filing for CFO sales
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 1,146 shares at an average price of $88.60, reducing his holdings by 5.1%. Multiple executive sales occurring near the stock’s recent highs may reinforce profit-taking concerns. Sathyanarayanan insider sale

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.