Ball Corporation (BALL) Slid On Mixed Demand For Aluminum Packaging

Parnassus Investments, an investment management company, released the “Parnassus Core Equity Fund” fourth quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. In the fourth quarter, U.S. stocks rose, closing up a robust 2024. The Fund (Investor Shares) surged 0.28% (net of fees) in the quarter underperforming the S&P 500 Index’s 2.41% return. For the year, the fund returned 18.52% (net of fees) compared to S&P 500 Index’s 25.02%. Stocks soared after the U.S. presidential election as investors awaited the incoming administration’s business-friendly policies. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.

In its fourth quarter 2024 investor letter, Parnassus Core Equity Fund emphasized stocks such as Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL). Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) is an aluminum packaging products supplier for the beverage, personal care, and household products industries. The one-month return of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) was 3.93%, and its shares lost 20.72% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On March 11, 2025, Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) stock closed at $51.27 per share with a market capitalization of $14.48 billion.

Parnassus Core Equity Fund stated the following regarding Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:

Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) reported that third-quarter sales fell slightly year over year amid mixed demand for aluminum packaging, with end-market weakness in some regions. Despite these short term headwinds, we anticipate a recovery in demand in the year to come.

Ball, the global leader in aluminum packaging, experienced lackluster results as consumer spending on beverages tightened across key regions globally.”

A high-speed robotic arm carefully packing aluminum cans into a cardboard carton.

Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 34 hedge fund portfolios held Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) at the end of the fourth quarter which was 30 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

In another article, we discussed Ball Corporation (NYSE:BALL) and shared the list of best aluminum and aluminum mining stocks to buy. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q4 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.