Sei Investments Co. Boosts Stock Position in Greif, Inc. $GEF

Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF) by 61.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,165 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,775 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in Greif were worth $1,017,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Greif by 106.0% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 616 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in Greif by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Simplex Trading LLC grew its holdings in Greif by 399.5% during the 4th quarter. Simplex Trading LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 1,482 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in Greif during the 1st quarter valued at about $201,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in shares of Greif during the fourth quarter valued at about $201,000. 45.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Greif Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GEF opened at $87.88 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $75.73 and its 200 day moving average is $71.14. The stock has a market cap of $4.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.75. Greif, Inc. has a 1-year low of $55.75 and a 1-year high of $90.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Greif (NYSE:GEF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Greif had a return on equity of 8.09% and a net margin of 7.53%.Greif’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Greif Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 17th were given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 17th. This is a boost from Greif’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. Greif’s dividend payout ratio is 77.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GEF shares. Bank of America downgraded shares of Greif from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Greif from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $97.00 target price (up from $78.00) on shares of Greif in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Greif from $74.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Greif from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Greif news, EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan sold 1,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.60, for a total value of $101,535.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,889,217.80. The trade was a 5.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy Bergwall sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.26, for a total transaction of $511,560.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 57,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,930,756.32. The trade was a 9.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 97,987 shares of company stock worth $8,498,748 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 7.70% of the company’s stock.

Greif Company Profile

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.