Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Short Interest Update

Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,960,000 shares, a drop of 6.2% from the March 15th total of 13,810,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,910,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.5 days.

Graphic Packaging Price Performance

GPK stock opened at $27.08 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $27.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.66. The stock has a market cap of $8.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.84. Graphic Packaging has a fifty-two week low of $20.07 and a fifty-two week high of $29.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. Graphic Packaging had a return on equity of 35.66% and a net margin of 7.67%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Graphic Packaging will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Graphic Packaging’s payout ratio is 17.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPK has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup lifted their target price on Graphic Packaging from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graphic Packaging currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Graphic Packaging news, EVP Joseph P. Yost sold 70,000 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $1,834,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 205,231 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,377,052.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graphic Packaging

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Graphic Packaging in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Graphic Packaging by 870.7% in the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,291 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 1,158 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Graphic Packaging Company Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.