Insider Selling: Silgan Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SLGN) CEO Sells 125,000 Shares of Stock

Silgan Holdings Inc. (NYSE:SLGN) CEO Adam J. Greenlee sold 125,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.73, for a total value of $6,841,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 227,332 shares in the company, valued at $12,441,880.36. This trade represents a 35.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Silgan Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE SLGN opened at $53.67 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.69. Silgan Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $41.14 and a 12 month high of $58.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.71.

Silgan (NYSE:SLGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.03. Silgan had a net margin of 4.72% and a return on equity of 19.70%. Equities analysts expect that Silgan Holdings Inc. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Silgan Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. This is a boost from Silgan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Silgan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SLGN shares. Loop Capital increased their target price on Silgan from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Silgan from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Silgan from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Silgan from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Silgan from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.22.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Silgan

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Silgan by 26.6% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 45,134 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,370,000 after buying an additional 9,470 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Silgan by 7.0% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,517 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors increased its stake in shares of Silgan by 0.5% during the third quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors now owns 155,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,149,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Silgan by 7.6% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 106,539 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,593,000 after purchasing an additional 7,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Silgan by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after purchasing an additional 3,832 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.25% of the company’s stock.

Silgan Company Profile

Silgan Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells rigid packaging solutions for consumer goods products in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Dispensing and Specialty Closures, Metal Containers, and Custom Containers. The Dispensing and Specialty Closures segment offers a range of metal and plastic closures, and dispensing systems for food, beverage, health care, garden, home, personal care, beauty products, and hard surface cleaning products, as well as capping/sealing equipment and detection systems.