ProShare Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON)

ProShare Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) by 8.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 529,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 48,646 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.54% of Sonoco Products worth $31,269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $246,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its stake in Sonoco Products by 15.7% during the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 17,700 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,080,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Sonoco Products by 6.5% in the second quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 18,416 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,087,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 4.8% in the second quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 39,922 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,356,000 after acquiring an additional 1,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Sonoco Products during the second quarter valued at $3,123,000. 76.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sonoco Products Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of Sonoco Products stock opened at $55.13 on Tuesday. Sonoco Products has a twelve month low of $49.98 and a twelve month high of $63.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $53.68 and its 200 day moving average is $56.78. The company has a market cap of $5.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71.

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.23. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 24.40% and a net margin of 7.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 5.3 EPS for the current year.

Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 9th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on SON shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Sonoco Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 13th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Sonoco Products from $69.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Sonoco Products from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 19th. Finally, Argus downgraded Sonoco Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.40.

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 through two segments: Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging.