MetLife Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,384 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,607 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Sonoco Products worth $2,706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sonoco Products by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 584,390 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,547,000 after acquiring an additional 126,867 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc boosted its stake in Sonoco Products by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 299,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,615,000 after purchasing an additional 8,895 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Sonoco Products by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 66,754 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,610,000 after purchasing an additional 5,505 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Sonoco Products in the 4th quarter worth approximately $15,533,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Sonoco Products by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 528,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,817,000 after purchasing an additional 20,075 shares during the period. 77.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO R. Howard Coker bought 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $46.10 per share, with a total value of $922,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 482,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,237,026.50. This trade represents a 4.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John R. Haley bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $46.76 per share, for a total transaction of $140,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 18,558 shares in the company, valued at $867,772.08. This represents a 19.28 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SON has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $60.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James dropped their price target on Sonoco Products from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Sonoco Products in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.43.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE SON opened at $46.23 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.48. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $39.46 and a one year high of $61.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 2.60%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sonoco Products will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.59%. This is a positive change from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Sonoco Products’s payout ratio is presently 128.48%.

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.