Anchor Capital Advisors LLC Buys 2,359 Shares of Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,452 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,359 shares during the period. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,981,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SON. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in Sonoco Products by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 128,848 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,199,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its holdings in Sonoco Products by 45.6% during the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 57,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,196,000 after buying an additional 17,913 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products in the fourth quarter valued at $341,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sonoco Products during the 4th quarter worth about $133,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in Sonoco Products by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 130,509 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,292,000 after acquiring an additional 29,543 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.69% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 1.4 %

SON stock traded down $0.80 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $56.46. 37,961 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 425,374. The company has a market capitalization of $5.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Sonoco Products has a twelve month low of $49.98 and a twelve month high of $63.74.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 22.42%. The business’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.27 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Sonoco Products will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This is a boost from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. TheStreet lowered Sonoco Products from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sonoco Products currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.00.

Insider Activity

In other Sonoco Products news, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $604,065.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,123.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 28,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,612,691.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $604,065.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,123.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 13,076 shares of company stock valued at $749,002. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Sonoco Products 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.