At a glance
Greif Bros Corporation is worth $2.10B, about 8 times its fiscal 2024 earnings. Revenue grew 4.3% to $4.35B in fiscal 2024, with 6.2% kept as profit. It pays no dividend; it spent $135.0M buying back its shares over FY2020–FY2024. The stock returned +44.6% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +8.4% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 40.2% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 18.9% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 3 months and 2 months after the lows.
The business in plain English
Greif makes heavy-duty containers that other manufacturers use to store and ship their goods. Worldwide, it produces industrial packaging: steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers (large reusable tanks, often on a pallet), jerrycans, closures and reconditioned used containers. It also offers services such as container life cycle management, logistics and warehousing. Buyers include chemical, paint, food, petroleum, agriculture and pharmaceutical companies, and no one customer dominates its sales.
In fiscal 2024 (the year ended October 31, 2024), Greif reported three business segments. Global Industrial Packaging covered the products above. Paper Packaging & Services made containerboard (the heavy paper used to make corrugated boxes), corrugated boxes, recycled paperboard, tubes and cores for North American customers. Land Management harvested timber from about 175,000 acres it owned in the southeastern US. From fiscal 2025, Greif regrouped into four segments: Customized Polymer Solutions, Durable Metal Solutions, Sustainable Fiber Solutions and Integrated Solutions.
Greif earns money on the gap between what it pays for steel, plastic resin, pulpwood and used boxes and what customers pay for finished packaging. Fiscal 2024 sales were $4.35 billion as restated in later filings, and gross margin (the share of sales left after production costs) was 20.6%. About 37% of fiscal 2024 sales came from outside the US, across more than 35 countries.
Price history
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GEF +44.6% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
Latest results
- In Q4 FY2025 (ended Jun 30, 2026), revenue was $1.17B, up 3.5% from a year earlier, and net income was $77.8M (+42.0%).
- For fiscal 2024, revenue was $4.35B (+4.3% year over year) with a 6.2% net margin.
Financial health check
| Operating margin | 7.8% watch |
|---|---|
| Free cash flow margin | 3.9% watch |
| Return on equity (FY2024) | 12.9% watch |
| Return on assets (FY2024) | 4% watch |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-729.4M weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2019 | $4.59B | $171.0M | $232.7M |
| FY2020 | $4.51B | $108.8M | $323.3M |
| FY2021 | $5.56B | $390.7M | $255.3M |
| FY2022 | $6.35B | $376.7M | $481.2M |
| FY2023 | $4.18B | $359.2M | $435.9M |
| FY2024 | $4.35B | $268.8M | $169.5M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $2.10B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 7.8 |
| Dividend yield | 2.86% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GEF price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +24.8% | +44.6% | +12.8% | +8.4% | +9.7% |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +24.8% |
| 2025 | +14.7% |
| 2024 | -3.7% |
| 2023 | +0.9% |
| 2022 | +14.5% |
| 2021 | +32.6% |
| 2020 | +11.4% |
| 2019 | +24.6% |
| 2018 | -36.7% |
| 2017 | +21.6% |
| 2016 | +73.6% |
| 2015 | -31.6% |
| 2014 | -6.8% |
| 2013 | +21.6% |
| 2012 | +1.4% |
| 2011 | -24.1% |
| 2010 | +17.9% |
| 2009 | +67.3% |
| 2008 | -47.1% |
| 2007 | +12.2% |
| 2006 | +80.2% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Lost 56.5% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 62.6%, back to its old high 24.7 months after the low |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 35.2% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 40.2%, back to its old high 2.9 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Gained 4.7% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 18.9%, back to its old high 1.5 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 20 sales ($10.5M), 9 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 3, 2026 | Ole G Rosgaard President and CEO, Director | sell | $3.5M |
| Aug 7, 2026 | Lawrence A. Hilsheimer EVP and CFO | sell | $1.9M |
| Aug 6, 2026 | Lawrence A. Hilsheimer EVP and CFO | sell | $1.8M |
| Mar 2, 2026 | Bala Sathyanarayanan EVP, Chief Human Resources Off | sell | $614K |
| Aug 3, 2026 | Timothy Bergwall SVP, Chief Commercial Officer | sell | $512K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| Vanguard Capital Management | 6.02% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 5.37% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Fuller & Thaler Asset Management, Inc. | 4.94% | Jun 30, 2026 |
ETFs with the most weight in GEF
| DGRS WisdomTree US Smallcap Quality Dividend Growth Fund | 0.74% |
| FYT First Trust Small Cap Value AlphaDEX Fund | 0.52% |
| SOVF Sovereign's Capital Flourish Fund | 0.51% |
| QSML WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Growth Fund | 0.48% |
| USVM VictoryShares US Small Mid Cap Value Momentum ETF | 0.44% |
| SVAL iShares US Small Cap Value Factor ETF | 0.32% |
| SMLV SPDR SSGA US Small Cap Low Volatility Index ETF | 0.31% |
| HEJD VictoryShares Hedged Equity Income ETF | 0.27% |
What could go wrong
- Russia profits that are hard to access. Russia supplied about 3% of fiscal 2024 sales but about 9% of operating profit. Currency controls generally stop Greif from moving cash out, and if those operations ceased, it expects an impairment (asset write-down).
- Steel, resin and paper costs swing widely. Greif purchases steel, plastic resin, pulpwood and used corrugated boxes in markets where prices rise and fall in cycles. If these costs, energy or freight rise faster than its own prices, profits shrink.
- Powerful customers and rivals pressure prices. Customers and suppliers keep merging, which gives them more bargaining power. Greif also competes with large vertically integrated rivals (firms that own more of their supply chain), and extra industry capacity can push prices down.
- Demand follows the industrial economy. Customers are manufacturers that use Greif's drums, containers and boxes to ship their goods. When factories slow in a recession, they need less packaging, and Greif's sales, prices and cash flow can all fall.
- Currency swings and global political risk. About 37% of fiscal 2024 sales came from outside the US. A stronger dollar shrinks those sales once converted, and wars, sanctions or tariffs across its 35-plus countries can disrupt operations.
- Deals and restructuring may disappoint. Greif buys and sells businesses and has closed higher-cost plants for years. Deals can bring unexpected difficulties or liabilities, and restructuring brings charges with no guarantee the hoped-for savings arrive.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Major agreement signed; Major agreement ended; New debt or financial obligation; Debt obligation accelerated
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Major agreement signed; Major agreement ended; New debt or financial obligation; Debt obligation accelerated
- Shareholder vote results
- Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
For income and retirement investors
Greif pays a dividend: $121 million in fiscal 2024 (the year ended October 31, 2024), with total dividend cash rising every year from $104 million in fiscal 2019. That payout used about 45% of earnings and 71% of free cash flow (cash left after spending on plants and equipment), which fell to $169.5 million from $435.9 million a year earlier. The yield was 2.86% as of October 28, 2026. Buybacks (share repurchases) played a smaller role: $135 million over fiscal 2020 to 2024, versus $558.9 million in dividends.
In the 2008 financial crisis the shares fell 62.6% and did not recover until April 2011, about 25 months after the low. In the 2020 COVID crash they dropped 40.2%, then regained their peak by June 2020. Over the 2022 market slide they gained 4.7%, despite a brief 18.9% dip. Single stocks carry more risk than diversified funds, because one company's setbacks can hit the whole holding.
Questions investors ask
How does Greif make money?
Greif makes money selling industrial packaging and related services to other manufacturers. Its products include steel, fiber and plastic drums, rigid intermediate bulk containers, jerrycans, closures and reconditioned containers, used by chemical, paint, food, petroleum, agriculture and pharmaceutical companies. Its fiscal 2024 annual report also describes containerboard, corrugated boxes and recycled paperboard for North American customers, plus timber from about 175,000 acres in the southeastern US. Fiscal 2024 sales were $4.35 billion, as restated in later filings.
Does Greif pay a dividend?
Yes. Greif paid $121 million in dividends in fiscal 2024, the year ended October 31, 2024, and its total dividend payments grew every year from $104 million in fiscal 2019. The yield (annual dividends as a share of the share price) was 2.86% as of October 28, 2026. Dividends took about 45% of fiscal 2024 net income and about 71% of free cash flow. That was a much larger share than a year earlier, because free cash flow fell to $169.5 million from $435.9 million.
Does Greif still do business in Russia?
Yes, according to its annual report for the year ended October 31, 2024. Russia made up about 3% of net sales, 9% of operating profit and 2% of total assets that year. Strict currency controls have generally kept Greif from moving money out of the country, apart from small permitted dividends, and it did not expect that to change in 2025. The company has said that if its Russian operations ceased, it would take an impairment charge, a write-down of those assets' value.
How did Greif stock do in past market crashes?
It fell hard in the 2008 and 2020 crashes but held up in 2022. During the financial crisis the shares dropped 62.6% between September 19, 2008 and March 9, 2009, and did not regain that peak until April 1, 2011. In the COVID crash they fell 40.2% between February 21 and March 12, 2020, then recovered by June 8, 2020. Across the 2022 bear market the shares gained 4.7%, despite an 18.9% dip between August 12 and September 29, 2022 that recovered by November 15.
How much debt does Greif have?
Greif had about $1.02 billion of total debt as of June 30, 2026, against $288.5 million in cash and investments. That left net debt (debt minus cash) of about $729 million. Shareholders' equity (assets minus liabilities) was about $3.0 billion, and total assets were $5.7 billion. Filings dated March 5 and May 14, 2026 reported new debt obligations and the signing and ending of major agreements, so its borrowing arrangements changed in the first half of 2026.