Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 2.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 120,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,499 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $6,128,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SON. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sonoco Products during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Sonoco Products by 78.8% during the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sonoco Products by 12,183.3% in the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 737 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Sonoco Products by 154.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 881 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on SON shares. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Sonoco Products in a research report on Friday, July 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut Sonoco Products from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Citigroup reduced their price target on Sonoco Products from $64.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Sonoco Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.00.

Sonoco Products Price Performance

NYSE SON opened at $55.68 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Sonoco Products has a 12-month low of $55.13 and a 12-month high of $56.07.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.02. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 5.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.38 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.53%.

Sonoco Products Company Profile

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.