MQS Management LLC Invests $454,000 in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 15,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $454,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its holdings in shares of Graphic Packaging by 171.7% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 603,023 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $17,631,000 after acquiring an additional 381,112 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its position in Graphic Packaging by 4.2% during the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 832,035 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $23,907,000 after purchasing an additional 33,691 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 99.6% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 104,490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,049,000 after purchasing an additional 52,139 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 268.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 51,261 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 37,358 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the 2nd quarter valued at $928,000. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPK opened at $28.63 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 1.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $29.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.28. Graphic Packaging Holding has a fifty-two week low of $21.54 and a fifty-two week high of $30.70. The firm has a market cap of $8.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.24, a P/E/G ratio of 11.31 and a beta of 0.83.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.27 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 28.26% and a net margin of 7.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on GPK shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Graphic Packaging from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com cut Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Truist Financial cut shares of Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.53.

Insider Activity at Graphic Packaging

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Michael James Farrell sold 25,900 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.99, for a total value of $750,841.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 81,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,348,943.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Graphic Packaging Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.