Greif (NYSE:GEF) Coverage Initiated at Sidoti

Investment analysts at Sidoti assumed coverage on shares of Greif (NYSE:GEF) in a report issued on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price target on the industrial products company’s stock. Sidoti’s price objective points to a potential upside of 38.72% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Greif from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $88.00 target price on shares of Greif in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Greif from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective (down from $69.00) on shares of Greif in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.40.

Greif Stock Performance

NYSE GEF opened at $67.04 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of 14.57 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.70. Greif has a 52-week low of $55.95 and a 52-week high of $71.36. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.46.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.14). Greif had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 4.99%. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.43 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Greif will post 4.2 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Greif

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in Greif by 4.0% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 784,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $49,126,000 after acquiring an additional 30,192 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Greif by 17.6% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 540,330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,053,000 after purchasing an additional 80,754 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Greif by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 524,637 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,874,000 after purchasing an additional 44,473 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Greif by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 372,040 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,381,000 after purchasing an additional 53,110 shares during the period. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its stake in Greif by 15.5% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 302,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,958,000 after purchasing an additional 40,494 shares during the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Greif

Greif, Inc engages in the production and sale of industrial packaging products and services worldwide. The company operates through Global Industrial Packaging; Paper Packaging & Services; and Land Management segments. The Global Industrial Packaging segment produces and sells industrial packaging products, including steel, fiber, and plastic drums; rigid and flexible intermediate bulk containers; closure systems for industrial packaging products; transit protection products; water bottles, and remanufactured and reconditioned industrial containers; and various services, such as container life cycle management, filling, logistics, warehousing, and other packaging services to chemicals, paints and pigments, food and beverage, petroleum, industrial coatings, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, mineral product, and other industries.