Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Buys 1,658 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 128,848 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $7,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SON. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,969,740 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $596,205,000 after purchasing an additional 64,047 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Sonoco Products by 20.2% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,787,019 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,474,000 after acquiring an additional 467,431 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,181,648 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $118,573,000 after acquiring an additional 138,181 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,279,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $69,550,000 after acquiring an additional 46,870 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 974,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,982,000 after acquiring an additional 142,592 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on SON shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. TheStreet lowered shares of Sonoco Products from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonoco Products has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.00.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

NYSE:SON traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $56.51. The stock had a trading volume of 342,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 430,805. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. Sonoco Products has a 52 week low of $49.98 and a 52 week high of $63.74. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.76.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.02). Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 22.42% and a net margin of 7.00%. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This is an increase from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.33%.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In related news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,612,691.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,612,691.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Russell K. Grissett sold 2,039 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.06, for a total transaction of $114,306.34. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,988 shares in the company, valued at $672,047.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,076 shares of company stock worth $749,002 in the last 90 days. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging segments. The Consumer Packaging segment offers round and shaped rigid paper, steel, and plastic containers; metal and peelable membrane ends, closures, and components; thermoformed plastic trays and enclosures; and high-barrier flexible packaging products.