Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding Company $GPK

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK) by 69.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 728,272 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,669,169 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.25% of Graphic Packaging worth $7,239,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 282.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,547 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,142 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 13,971.4% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,970 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Graphic Packaging by 2,321.1% during the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 3,220 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3,087 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in Graphic Packaging during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC increased its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 2,161.1% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 3,776 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 3,609 shares during the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GPK. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial cut shares of Graphic Packaging from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graphic Packaging currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $11.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graphic Packaging

In other Graphic Packaging news, Director Jeffrey Stafeil purchased 17,878 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $11.19 per share, for a total transaction of $200,054.82. Following the transaction, the director owned 17,878 shares in the company, valued at $200,054.82. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:GPK opened at $11.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average is $10.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a 52 week low of $8.78 and a 52 week high of $23.76.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.03. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 3.17%.The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Graphic Packaging has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.750-1.150 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 0.75 EPS for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is 47.83%.

Graphic Packaging Company Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company is a leading provider of sustainable paperboard packaging solutions, offering a broad portfolio of products designed for food, beverage and other consumer goods markets. The company specializes in the manufacture of containerboard, folding cartons and engineered fill materials, as well as beverage packaging systems including paperboard cups, carriers and related components.

Through a network of manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe and Latin America, Graphic Packaging serves a diverse customer base that includes major consumer packaged goods companies, quick-service restaurants and retail chains.