Packaging Corporation of America vs Sonoco
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Packaging Corporation of America and Sonoco side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Packaging Corporation of America is the larger business, with $9.0B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $7.5B for Sonoco.
- Sonoco grew revenue faster (41.7%, against 7.2%).
- Sonoco kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (13.5% operating margin, against 12.3%).
- Packaging Corporation of America turned more of its sales into free cash flow (8.1% FCF margin, against 4.6%).
- Packaging Corporation of America earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (11.8%, against 9.4%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Packaging Corporation of America’s earnings: a P/E of 33.0x against 4.8x for Sonoco.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Packaging Corporation of America
PKG
5/11
Gross marginFCF marginReturn on capitalNet debt / EBITDAShare count change
Sonoco
SON
6/11
Revenue growth5-year growthOperating marginNet marginReturn on equityPiotroski F-score
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | PKG FY25 | SON FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $22.6B | $4.9B |
| Revenue | $9.0B | $7.5B |
| Free cash flow | $729M | $346M |
| Net income | $774M | $1.0B |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 7.2% | 41.7% |
| 5-year growth | 6.2% | 7.1% |
| Share count change | 0.1% | 0.3% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 21.0% | 20.9% |
| Operating margin | 12.3% | 13.5% |
| Net margin | 8.6% | 13.3% |
| FCF margin | 8.1% | 4.6% |
| Return on capital | 11.8% | 9.4% |
| Return on equity | 17.2% | 34.1% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $3.4B | $3.9B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 1.9x | 2.6x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $603M | $219M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 33.0x | 4.8x |
| Piotroski F-score | 4 | 5 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.