Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the five research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $75.25.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on GEF shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Greif from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Zacks Research upgraded Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Greif from $71.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 target price on shares of Greif in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Greif from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.54, for a total transaction of $143,080.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 58,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,197,824.12. This trade represents a 3.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 10,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.90, for a total value of $811,766.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,807 shares in the company, valued at $2,756,844.30. This trade represents a 22.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 22,252 shares of company stock valued at $1,971,735 and sold 54,211 shares valued at $3,950,846. Company insiders own 7.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of Greif by 6.5% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 895,344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,506,000 after purchasing an additional 54,256 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Greif in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,061,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Greif by 21.7% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 131,131 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,522,000 after buying an additional 23,422 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Greif in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,220,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Greif by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 78,173 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,672,000 after buying an additional 18,339 shares during the period. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Greif Price Performance

Shares of GEF opened at $66.21 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Greif has a 1-year low of $48.23 and a 1-year high of $77.14. The stock has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $72.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.90.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.21). Greif had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 7.52%.The firm had revenue of $994.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Greif will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Greif Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Greif’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.96%.

About Greif

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.