Sonoco Products Company $SON Shares Acquired by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Sonoco Products Company (NYSE:SON) by 634.3% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 133,924 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 115,686 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $7,244,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SON. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. WPG Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 93.1% in the 1st quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 1,826.9% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Paul Joachimczyk purchased 8,058 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $49.64 per share, with a total value of $399,999.12. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 28,558 shares in the company, valued at $1,417,619.12. The trade was a 39.31% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider James A. Harrell III purchased 6,753 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $50.37 per share, with a total value of $340,148.61. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $507,225.90. The trade was a 203.59% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of SON stock opened at $56.16 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.51, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average of $51.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.56. Sonoco Products Company has a 52 week low of $38.65 and a 52 week high of $58.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.37). The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.88 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 16.50% and a net margin of 13.57%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. Sonoco Products has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.800-6.200 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products Company will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SON has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sonoco Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Sonoco Products from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $61.33.

Sonoco Products Profile

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.