Sealed Air (NYSE:SEE) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Sealed Air Co. (NYSE:SEE)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $32.10, but opened at $35.00. Sealed Air shares last traded at $34.41, with a volume of 685,556 shares.

The industrial products company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.25. Sealed Air had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 94.93%. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Sealed Air Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Sealed Air’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho decreased their target price on Sealed Air from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sealed Air from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $35.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Truist Financial raised Sealed Air from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $39.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Sealed Air in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.91.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sealed Air

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Sealed Air during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sealed Air during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sealed Air during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Column Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sealed Air by 57.9% in the 3rd quarter. Column Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Sealed Air by 80.3% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,069 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. 94.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sealed Air Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.49, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $34.34 and a 200 day moving average of $34.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.31.

About Sealed Air

Sealed Air Corporation provides packaging solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. It operates through two segments, Food and Protective. The Food segment offers integrated packaging materials and automation equipment solutions to provide food safety, shelf life extension, reduce food waste, automate processes, and optimize total cost for food processors in the fresh red meat, smoked and processed meats, poultry, seafood, plant-based, fluids and liquids and cheese markets under the CRYOVAC, CRYOVAC Grip & Tear, CRYOVAC Darfresh, LIQUIBOX, Simple Steps, and Optidure brands.