Greif (NYSE:GEF) Sets New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $77.42 and last traded at $76.41, with a volume of 13485 shares. The stock had previously closed at $76.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GEF shares. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Greif from $79.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings raised Greif from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Zacks Research raised Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Bank of America lowered Greif from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Greif from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Greif has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $74.25.

Greif Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $69.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.59. The firm has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.06). Greif had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 7.27%.The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Greif, Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 17th were given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 17th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is 95.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Greif

In other news, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 2,000 shares of Greif stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total transaction of $146,280.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 63,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,668,672.48. This trade represents a 3.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock worth $412,120. 7.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Greif by 106.0% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 616 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Greif by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Greif in the 4th quarter valued at $84,000. Simplex Trading LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Greif by 399.5% during the 4th quarter. Simplex Trading LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,482 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new position in shares of Greif during the 4th quarter worth about $201,000. 45.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Greif Company Profile

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.