Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.07 EPS

Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The industrial products company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.07, Briefing.com reports. Sonoco Products had a return on equity of 22.42% and a net margin of 7.00%. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Sonoco Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SON traded down $1.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $56.03. The stock had a trading volume of 515,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 431,165. The firm has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.93, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Sonoco Products has a fifty-two week low of $49.98 and a fifty-two week high of $63.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $56.96 and a 200-day moving average of $55.98.

Sonoco Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a boost from Sonoco Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Sonoco Products’s dividend payout ratio is 42.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on SON. TheStreet downgraded Sonoco Products from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Citigroup cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $66.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.00.

Insider Activity at Sonoco Products

In other Sonoco Products news, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $604,065.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $774,123.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Russell K. Grissett sold 2,039 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.06, for a total value of $114,306.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $672,047.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total value of $604,065.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $774,123.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,076 shares of company stock valued at $749,002 in the last three months. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Sonoco Products

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.