Matthew Leahy Sells 1,300 Shares of Greif (NYSE:GEF) Stock

by · The Cerbat Gem

Greif, Inc. (NYSE:GEF – Get Free Report) SVP Matthew Leahy sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.82, for a total value of $95,966.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,739 shares in the company, valued at $202,192.98. The trade was a 32.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Greif Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of GEF stock traded up $1.42 on Friday, hitting $75.38. The stock had a trading volume of 262,030 shares, compared to its average volume of 218,940. Greif, Inc. has a one year low of $48.23 and a one year high of $75.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $69.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.71. The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 27.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Greif (NYSE:GEF – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.21). Greif had a net margin of 7.52% and a return on equity of 8.46%. The business had revenue of $994.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Greif, Inc. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Greif Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 18th. Greif’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.96%.

Key Stories Impacting Greif

Here are the key news stories impacting Greif this week:

  • Positive Sentiment: CFO Lawrence Hilsheimer bought roughly 18,322 shares across Feb. 3–4 (total purchase value ~\$1.63M), a strong insider buy that can be seen as management confidence in the business and supports the stock. Read More.
  • Positive Sentiment: EVP Bala Sathyanarayanan made small purchases (100 and 200 shares on Feb. 3–4), a modest insider buy that provides additional alignment with shareholders. Read More.
  • Neutral Sentiment: Many insiders executed both buys and sells on nearby dates (different prices and sizes). Paired activity can reflect option exercises, tax/timing needs or rebalancing rather than a pure operational signal — interpret cautiously. Read More. Read More.
  • Negative Sentiment: Net insider selling is significant: CFO sold 22,778 shares (~\$1.64M), EVP Bala sold ~13,337 shares (~\$992k across multiple trades) and SVP Kimberly Kellermann sold 5,265 shares (~\$379k). Aggregate proceeds exceed buys, which can exert near‑term pressure on the stock. Read More. Read More. Read More.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Greif

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Greif by 84.9% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $455,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Greif by 147.5% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 11,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 6,835 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Greif by 3.7% in the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 97,872 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,361,000 after purchasing an additional 3,509 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Greif in the second quarter valued at about $1,240,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Greif by 0.4% in the second quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 115,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,517,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 45.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GEF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 price target on Greif in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Greif from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Greif from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Greif from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Greif from $71.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Greif presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.50.

View Our Latest Analysis on GEF

About Greif

(Get Free Report)

Greif, Inc is a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, with a history dating back to its founding in 1877. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has evolved from a regional barrel and drum manufacturer into a diversified packaging provider serving a wide range of end markets. Greif’s longstanding heritage in container solutions has positioned it as a trusted partner for customers seeking reliable, high-quality packaging options.

The company’s core business revolves around the design, manufacture and sale of industrial packaging products, including steel, plastic and fiber drums; intermediate bulk containers (IBCs); safety closures; rigid, flexible and reconditioned packaging; containerboard and protective packaging.

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