Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $62.6250.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Sonoco Products in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $56.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Monday, January 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $48.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $52.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Powell Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Powell Investment Advisors LLC now owns 20,718 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,996 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $131,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in Sonoco Products by 77.7% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its position in Sonoco Products by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,006 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,742 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

Shares of SON opened at $55.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Sonoco Products has a 1-year low of $38.65 and a 1-year high of $58.44. The stock has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a PE ratio of 5.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $48.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.12.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.04. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 13.34%.The business had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 29.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.05%.

About Sonoco Products

Sonoco Products Company (NYSE: SON) is a global provider of diversified packaging solutions, serving a wide range of consumer, industrial and retail markets. The company offers a broad portfolio that includes rigid paper and plastic containers, flexible packaging, industrial core and tube products, thermoformed plastics, retail point-of-purchase displays, and packaging supply chain services. Through its solutions, Sonoco helps customers in food and beverage, personal care, chemicals, healthcare, home and garden, and electronics industries address their packaging needs, improve product shelf appeal, and optimize logistics efficiency.

With operations in more than 30 countries across North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa, Sonoco leverages a global network of manufacturing facilities, recycling centers and distribution channels to meet the demands of multinational and regional customers.