Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) Short Interest Update

Graphic Packaging Holding (NYSE:GPK) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,780,000 shares, a decline of 6.8% from the December 15th total of 20,160,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,370,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.9 days.

Graphic Packaging Stock Up 1.2 %

GPK traded up $0.34 during trading on Monday, reaching $27.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,789,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,720,368. Graphic Packaging has a one year low of $23.47 and a one year high of $30.70. The company has a market capitalization of $8.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.96, a P/E/G ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $28.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.57.

Graphic Packaging (NYSE:GPK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.04). Graphic Packaging had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 28.26%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.27 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Graphic Packaging will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Graphic Packaging Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 15th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Graphic Packaging’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on GPK. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Graphic Packaging from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Graphic Packaging from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Graphic Packaging in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Graphic Packaging from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Graphic Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.37.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Charles D. Lischer sold 12,000 shares of Graphic Packaging stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total value of $355,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 49,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,022.85. This trade represents a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael James Farrell sold 25,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.99, for a total transaction of $750,841.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,026 shares in the company, valued at $2,348,943.74. The trade was a 24.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graphic Packaging

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GPK. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Graphic Packaging by 2,484.0% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graphic Packaging during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,169,000. XML Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Graphic Packaging by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 21,910 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Aspire Private Capital LLC raised its holdings in Graphic Packaging by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Aspire Private Capital LLC now owns 25,428 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $691,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in Graphic Packaging by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,021,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,734,000 after acquiring an additional 13,175 shares in the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Graphic Packaging Company Profile

Graphic Packaging Holding Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, produces, and sells consumer packaging products to brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. It operates through three segments: Paperboard Manufacturing, Americas Paperboard Packaging, and Europe Paperboard Packaging.