Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) by 485.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 272 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Packaging Co. of America were worth $53,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 94.6% in the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 181 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Packaging Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its stake in Packaging Co. of America by 60.0% in the 4th quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 264 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. 89.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PKG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Packaging Co. of America from $172.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Bank of America raised shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $172.00 to $202.00 in a report on Monday, March 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Packaging Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Packaging Co. of America from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $182.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, April 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.29.

Insider Activity at Packaging Co. of America

In other Packaging Co. of America news, VP Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 14,191 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.80, for a total value of $2,466,395.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 183,930 shares in the company, valued at $31,967,034. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Robert P. Mundy sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.51, for a total value of $1,825,100.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,454 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,478,319.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 14,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.80, for a total value of $2,466,395.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 183,930 shares in the company, valued at $31,967,034. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,041 shares of company stock worth $6,799,177 over the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Packaging Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of Packaging Co. of America stock opened at $179.89 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.78. Packaging Co. of America has a 12-month low of $122.20 and a 12-month high of $191.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $181.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $167.48.

Packaging Co. of America (NYSE:PKG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. Packaging Co. of America had a net margin of 9.81% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company’s revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.35 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Packaging Co. of America will post 8.31 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Packaging Co. of America’s payout ratio is 58.96%.

Packaging Co. of America Company Profile

Packaging Corporation of America manufactures and sells containerboard and corrugated packaging products in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Packaging, Paper, and Corporate and Other. The Packaging segment offers various containerboard and corrugated packaging products, such as conventional shipping containers used to protect and transport manufactured goods; multi-color boxes and displays that help to merchandise the packaged product in retail locations; and honeycomb protective packaging products, as well as packaging for meat, fresh fruit and vegetables, processed food, beverages, and other industrial and consumer products.