Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Acquires 8,348,907 Shares of Graphic Packaging Holding Company $GPK

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE:GPK) by 6,288.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 8,481,670 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 8,348,907 shares during the quarter. Graphic Packaging accounts for 1.2% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Graphic Packaging were worth $84,308,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Graphic Packaging by 36.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 171,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,453,000 after acquiring an additional 45,944 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 9.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,471,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,201,000 after purchasing an additional 132,692 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 5.4% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 15,485 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 791 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Graphic Packaging by 28.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,130,941 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,899,000 after purchasing an additional 477,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Graphic Packaging by 3.6% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,002,964 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $21,133,000 after purchasing an additional 34,790 shares in the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey Stafeil acquired 17,878 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $11.19 per share, with a total value of $200,054.82. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 17,878 shares in the company, valued at $200,054.82. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GPK. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Graphic Packaging from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Zacks Research raised Graphic Packaging from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Graphic Packaging from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Graphic Packaging in a report on Monday, June 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $11.70 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $13.00 price objective on Graphic Packaging in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $12.26.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Graphic Packaging stock traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $10.28. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,759,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,834,232. Graphic Packaging Holding Company has a one year low of $8.78 and a one year high of $23.76. The company has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.18 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.03. Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 3.17% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The company 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 firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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, research analysts forecast that Graphic Packaging Holding Company will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. Graphic Packaging’s 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.