Merrithew & Thorsten Inc Makes New Investment in Ball Corporation $BALL

Merrithew & Thorsten Inc acquired a new position in Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 10,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $546,000. Ball makes up about 0.6% of Merrithew & Thorsten Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BALL. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Ball by 1,465.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,314,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230,791 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc boosted its position in Ball by 141.3% in the 3rd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,248,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,949,000 after purchasing an additional 731,076 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Ball by 55.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,055,094 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,270,000 after purchasing an additional 730,462 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Ball by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,651,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,521,000 after purchasing an additional 602,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Ball by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,828,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $193,003,000 after purchasing an additional 455,089 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ball news, SVP Kathleen Pitre sold 10,660 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.63, for a total transaction of $710,275.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 36,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,450,118.36. This represents a 22.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Fauze Villatoro bought 1,551 shares of Ball stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.51 per share, with a total value of $100,055.01. Following the acquisition, the senior vice president directly owned 13,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $888,818.78. The trade was a 12.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ball Stock Performance

Shares of BALL stock opened at $58.58 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day moving average is $61.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Ball Corporation has a 12-month low of $44.83 and a 12-month high of $68.29.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.09. Ball had a return on equity of 18.69% and a net margin of 6.86%.The business had revenue of $3.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Ball has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.930- EPS. Analysts expect that Ball Corporation will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ball Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Ball’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho increased their price target on Ball from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Ball from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ball from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 price target on Ball in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Ball from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.64.

Ball Profile

Ball Corporation is a leading provider of sustainable aluminum packaging solutions and advanced aerospace technologies. Headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, the company serves customers in the beverage, food and aerosol markets through a global network of manufacturing facilities. With an emphasis on sustainability and innovation, Ball designs and produces metal cans, bottles and ends that support recycling and reduce environmental impact.

The company’s packaging segment specializes in beverage cans for soft drinks, beer and energy drinks, as well as metal packaging for food and personal care applications.