Geode Capital Management LLC Has $89.80 Million Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Geode Capital Management LLC lowered its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,837,676 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 26,080 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $89,795,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter valued at $60,984,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 63.2% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,129,133 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,181,000 after buying an additional 437,128 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Sonoco Products during the 4th quarter worth about $15,533,000. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter valued at about $11,672,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 312.1% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 185,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,126,000 after purchasing an additional 140,370 shares in the last quarter. 77.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sonoco Products news, Director John R. Haley acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 18,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,772.08. This trade represents a 19.28 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO R. Howard Coker acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 482,365 shares in the company, valued at $22,237,026.50. This trade represents a 4.33 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sonoco Products Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:SON opened at $42.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64. Sonoco Products has a 1-year low of $39.46 and a 1-year high of $61.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonoco Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is presently 126.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on SON shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised Sonoco Products from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.50.

About Sonoco Products

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.