StockNews.com Begins Coverage on WestRock (NYSE:WRK)

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of WestRock (NYSE:WRK) in a research note published on Tuesday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on WestRock from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Truist Financial lifted their target price on WestRock from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Argus boosted their price objective on WestRock from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WestRock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $51.75.

WestRock Price Performance

Shares of WestRock stock opened at $51.51 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $51.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.49. WestRock has a one year low of $27.86 and a one year high of $54.83.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $4.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.75 billion. WestRock had a return on equity of 5.85% and a net margin of 1.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.77 EPS. Equities analysts expect that WestRock will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

WestRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $0.3025 per share. This represents a $1.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 13th. WestRock’s payout ratio is currently 101.68%.

Insider Activity at WestRock

In other news, insider John L. O’neal sold 6,965 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.47, for a total transaction of $358,488.55. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 60,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,113,471.77. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider John L. O’neal sold 6,965 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.47, for a total transaction of $358,488.55. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 60,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,113,471.77. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Denise R. Singleton sold 9,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.46, for a total value of $499,162.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,856,721.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WestRock

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in WestRock by 268.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new stake in WestRock during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in WestRock by 59.0% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 862 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. First United Bank & Trust bought a new stake in WestRock during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in WestRock during the first quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors own 83.38% of the company’s stock.

About WestRock

WestRock Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides fiber-based paper and packaging solutions in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It operates through four segments: Corrugated Packaging, Consumer Packaging, Global Paper, and Distribution. The Corrugated Packaging segment produces containerboards, corrugated sheets, corrugated packaging, and preprinted linerboards to consumer and industrial products manufacturers, and corrugated box manufacturers.