PACKAGING CORP OF AMERICA vs SONOCO PRODUCTS CO, two Paper & Packaging stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Sonoco out-earns Packaging Corp on both counts, 28.33% on equity against 16.16% and a 13.57% net margin against 8.04%, yet costs a fraction of the price, 5.4 times earnings against 29.35 times and 1.53 times book against 4.69 times. The reconciling fact is debt: Sonoco carries 1.31 to Packaging Corp's 0.86, and its mixed industrial packaging is more cyclical than pure containerboard. Sonoco pays the larger dividend, 3.83% against 2.07%, and edges the free cash flow yield, 3.94% against 3.26%. Packaging Corp is the larger, cleaner-balance-sheet name at $21.5B; Sonoco is the cheaper, higher-returning one at $5.5B, with leverage as the trade-off.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | PKG | SON |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $228.98 | $55.91 |
| Market cap | $20.4B | $5.6B |
| Sector | Paper & Packaging | Paper & Packaging |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +11.3% | -4.7% |
| P/E | 27.8 | 5.5 |
| P/B | 4.45 | 1.55 |
| P/S | 2.21 | 0.74 |
| EV/EBITDA | 13.2 | 8.8 |
| Revenue growth | +7.8% | +33.6% |
| Gross margin | 19.1% | 20.6% |
| Operating margin | 10.6% | 7.6% |
| Net margin | 8.0% | 13.6% |
| Return on equity | 16.2% | 28.3% |
| Return on assets | 6.9% | 9.2% |
| Return on invested capital | 9.8% | 9.7% |
| FCF yield | 3.4% | 3.9% |
| Dividend yield | 2.2% | 3.8% |
| Debt / equity | 0.86 | 1.31 |
| Current ratio | 3.07 | 0.96 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.68 | 1.58 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 4 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.