Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) Shares Gap Down to $27.83

Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $27.83, but opened at $26.50. Graphic Packaging shares last traded at $26.54, with a volume of 1,591,211 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on GPK. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. StockNews.com lowered Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $21.00 target price on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Graphic Packaging from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.44.

Graphic Packaging Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of $8.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $27.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.05.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.38 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 7.36%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Graphic Packaging Holding will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is 18.10%.

Insider Activity

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $1,834,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 205,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,377,052.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pullen Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the first quarter worth about $2,372,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 30.0% during the first quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $539,000 after purchasing an additional 4,267 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Graphic Packaging by 3.9% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 145,391 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,243,000 after buying an additional 5,473 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 0.3% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 384,325 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,215,000 after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 215.0% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 704,530 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,558,000 after buying an additional 480,843 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Company 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.