Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock traded as high as $260.00 and last traded at $258.0040, with a volume of 6,532 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $256.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Packaging Corporation of America from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $294.00 target price (up from $280.00) on shares of Packaging Corporation of America in a report on Friday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Packaging Corporation of America from $320.00 to $322.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Packaging Corporation of America from $292.00 to $289.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.43.

Packaging Corporation of America Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a current ratio of 2.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.95 billion, a PE ratio of 31.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $237.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $229.47.

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The industrial products company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.61 billion. Packaging Corporation of America had a return on equity of 19.63% and a net margin of 7.40%. Packaging Corporation of America’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.73 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Packaging Corporation of America will post 10.56 EPS for the current year.

Packaging Corporation of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Packaging Corporation of America’s payout ratio is presently 73.89%.

Insider Transactions at Packaging Corporation of America

In other Packaging Corporation of America news, President Thomas A. Hassfurther sold 8,797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.00, for a total transaction of $2,260,829.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 209,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,958,178. This trade represents a 4.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Donald R. Shirley sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.71, for a total value of $3,008,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 19,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,791,068.10. This trade represents a 38.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 27,860 shares of company stock worth $7,063,351. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. John Boyer Inc. acquired a new position in Packaging Corporation of America during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Oslo Pensjonsforsikring AS acquired a new stake in shares of Packaging Corporation of America in the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America in the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Lynch Investment Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Packaging Corporation of America in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 89.78% of the company’s stock.

About Packaging Corporation of America

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE:PKG) is a manufacturer of corrugated packaging and containerboard products serving businesses primarily in the United States. Its products include shipping boxes, retail packaging, displays, protective packaging and specialty corrugated solutions used to transport and present a broad range of consumer and industrial goods.

The company also produces uncoated freesheet paper and related paper products for commercial printing, office use, publishing, converting and other applications.