11,600 Ball Corporation $BALL Shares Sold by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC cut its holdings in shares of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) by 19.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,632 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,600 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Ball were worth $2,669,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ball in the second quarter worth $1,310,991,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Ball by 8.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,416,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $837,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024,861 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Ball by 6.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,999,409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $354,605,000 after purchasing an additional 340,677 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Ball during the second quarter valued at $163,768,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Ball during the second quarter valued at $160,506,000. 86.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ball

In other news, SVP Mandy Glew sold 5,626 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.80, for a total transaction of $358,938.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $459,934.20. This represents a 43.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ball Stock Down 0.2%

BALL stock opened at $66.67 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Ball Corporation has a 1 year low of $46.41 and a 1 year high of $69.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.22. The firm has a market cap of $17.35 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.94.

Ball (NYSE:BALL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. Ball had a net margin of 3.52% and a return on equity of 18.81%. Ball’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.02 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ball Corporation will post 4.00 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ball Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Ball’s payout ratio is currently 40.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on BALL shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Ball from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Ball from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Ball from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Ball from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Ball from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.15.

Ball Profile

Ball Corporation is a global supplier of aluminum packaging, best known for making beverage cans and ends for beverage companies. Its products are used for a range of drinks, including beer, soft drinks, energy drinks and other beverages. The company also offers aluminum cups and other specialty packaging products. Ball serves customers across North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Its packaging operations support beverage brands and producers with manufacturing capabilities in multiple regions.