Ball (NYSE: BLL)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reiterated by Zacks Investment Research in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday. They currently have a $41.00 price target on the stock.
Zacks’ analyst wrote, “Ball Corporation’s fourth quarter earnings decreased 9% to $0.47, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.54. The poor performance was attributed to weaker beverage can volumes in North America and Europe, in addition to six fewer accounting days. However, this was partially offset by a strong operating performance and growth in specialty packaging. The company s focus on “Drive for 10 Actions” is set to deliver better results over the next decade. The company’s efforts in maintaining continuous growth in 2011 has built the momentum for a strong start towards its goals for the coming years. We reiterate our Neutral recommendation and target price of $41.00 on the stock. “
Separately, analysts at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Ball in a research note to investors on Friday, January 27th. Analysts at Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) initiated coverage on shares of Ball in a research note to investors on Tuesday, January 24th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Also, analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) upgraded shares of Ball from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note to investors on Thursday, January 12nd. They now have a $42.00 price target on the stock.
Ball Corporation (Ball) is a supplier of metal and plastic packaging, to the beverages, food and household product industries. The Company also supplies aerospace and other technologies and services to governmental and commercial customers within its aerospace and technologies segment (Ball Aerospace). The Company also produces steel food containers, steel aerosol containers, polyethylene terepthalate (PET) and polypropylene plastic bottles for beverages and foods, steel paint cans and decorative steel tins. Ball Aerospace designs, development and manufactures of aerospace systems. It produces spacecraft, instruments and sensors, radio frequency and microwave technologies, data exploitation solutions and a range of advanced aerospace technologies and products. It operates in five segments: metal beverage packaging, Americas and Asia; metal beverage packaging, Europe; metal food and household products packaging, Americas; plastic packaging, Americas, and aerospace and technologies.
Ball traded up 2.70% on Wednesday, hitting $40.32. Ball has a 52-week low of $29.69 and a 52-week high of $40.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.67 and a 200-day moving average of $35.17. The company has a market cap of $6.479 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95.
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