PKG vs SON
Packaging Corp. of America and Sonoco Products Co., side by side — 10 fiscal years reported in USD, drawn from SEC filings.
Most recent reported year
| Metric | PKG | SON |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $9.0B | $7.5B |
| Net income | $774.1M | $1.0B |
| Gross margin | 21.0% | 20.9% |
| Net margin | 8.6% | 13.3% |
| Return on equity | 17.2% | 34.1% |
| Diluted EPS | $8.58 | $10.07 |
| Dividend / share | $5.00 | $2.11 |
| Payout ratio | 58.1% | 20.7% |
| Free cash flow | $728.6M | $345.8M |
| Equity | $4.6B | $3.6B |
| Net debt / equity | 0.75× | 1.09× |
| Current ratio | 3.17× | 1.05× |
| Revenue CAGR 5y | 6.2% | 7.5% |
| Profit CAGR 5y | 10.9% | 37.0% |
PKG bills 1.2× the revenue of SON, and SON keeps more of each dollar of revenue as profit (13.3% against 8.6%).
The stronger figure of the pair is set in bold. That is arithmetic, not a recommendation — this page does not pick a winner. "·" marks a figure not available in our data.
10 years side by side
| Fiscal year | PKG | SON |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $9.0B | $7.5B |
| FY2024 | $8.4B | $5.3B |
| FY2023 | $7.8B | $5.4B |
| FY2022 | $8.5B | $5.9B |
| FY2021 | $7.7B | $5.6B |
| FY2020 | $6.7B | $5.2B |
| FY2019 | $7.0B | $5.4B |
| FY2018 | $7.0B | $5.4B |
| FY2017 | $6.4B | $5.0B |
| FY2016 | $5.8B | $4.8B |
Bottom line
| Fiscal year | PKG | SON |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $774.1M | $1.0B |
| FY2024 | $805.1M | $163.9M |
| FY2023 | $765.2M | $475.0M |
| FY2022 | $1.0B | $466.4M |
| FY2021 | $841.1M | $-85.5M |
| FY2020 | $461.0M | $207.5M |
| FY2019 | $696.4M | $291.8M |
| FY2018 | $738.0M | $313.6M |
| FY2017 | $668.6M | $175.3M |
| FY2016 | $449.6M | $286.4M |
18 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | +$1,470,547,000 | PKG |
| FY2024 | +$3,077,935,000 | PKG |
| FY2023 | +$2,360,974,000 | PKG |
| FY2022 | +$2,618,673,000 | PKG |
| FY2021 | +$2,139,862,000 | PKG |
| FY2020 | +$1,420,757,000 | PKG |
| FY2019 | +$1,590,093,000 | PKG |
| FY2018 | +$1,623,662,000 | PKG |
| FY2017 | +$1,408,250,000 | PKG |
| FY2016 | +$996,123,000 | PKG |
| FY2015 | +$777,331,000 | PKG |
| FY2014 | +$835,606,000 | PKG |
| FY2013 | −$1,196,357,000 | SON |
| FY2012 | −$1,969,671,000 | SON |
| FY2011 | −$1,878,821,000 | SON |
| FY2010 | −$1,688,515,000 | SON |
| FY2009 | −$1,449,742,000 | SON |
| FY2008 | −$1,761,892,000 | SON |
The higher-revenue side has changed between PKG and SON over this period. The gap has narrowed since the earliest year compared.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
18 fiscal years
| Fiscal year | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | −4.7 pp | SON |
| FY2024 | +6.5 pp | PKG |
| FY2023 | +1.1 pp | PKG |
| FY2022 | +4.2 pp | PKG |
| FY2021 | +12.4 pp | PKG |
| FY2020 | +3.0 pp | PKG |
| FY2019 | +4.6 pp | PKG |
| FY2018 | +4.7 pp | PKG |
| FY2017 | +6.9 pp | PKG |
| FY2016 | +1.8 pp | PKG |
| FY2015 | +2.6 pp | PKG |
| FY2014 | +2.2 pp | PKG |
| FY2013 | +7.7 pp | PKG |
| FY2012 | +1.6 pp | PKG |
| FY2011 | +1.2 pp | PKG |
| FY2010 | +3.5 pp | PKG |
| FY2009 | +8.1 pp | PKG |
| FY2008 | +1.9 pp | PKG |
The higher net margin has changed hands between PKG and SON over this period.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
SON's net margin has been more volatile than PKG's over the 18 comparable fiscal years — 2.9 percentage points of standard deviation against 2.2.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in net margin changed hands between PKG and SON over these 18 fiscal years — PKG led in 17 and SON in 1.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Standard deviation, each side
SON's return on equity has been more volatile than PKG's over the 18 comparable fiscal years — 7.5 percentage points of standard deviation against 6.6.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.
Year by year
The lead in return on equity changed hands between PKG and SON over these 18 fiscal years — PKG led in 16 and SON in 2.
18 of 18 comparable fiscal years — a year missing data on either side is not counted.