WestRock (NYSE:WRK) Shares Gap Up to $49.70

Shares of WestRock (NYSE:WRK) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $49.70, but opened at $52.20. WestRock shares last traded at $52.16, with a volume of 834,411 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com started coverage on WestRock in a research report on Saturday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Argus increased their price target on WestRock from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on WestRock from $51.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of WestRock from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WestRock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.80.

WestRock Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $50.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.61, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

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

WestRock Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th were paid a $0.3025 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 13th. This represents a $1.21 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. WestRock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.68%.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WestRock

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WRK. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in WestRock during the fourth quarter worth approximately $198,063,000. Westchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in WestRock by 297.7% in the fourth quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC now owns 3,065,129 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $127,264,000 after acquiring an additional 2,294,371 shares during the last quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP acquired a new position in WestRock in the third quarter valued at $61,378,000. KRYGER CAPITAL Ltd purchased a new position in shares of WestRock during the fourth quarter worth about $55,228,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in shares of WestRock by 140.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,173,923 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $77,826,000 after purchasing an additional 1,269,375 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.38% of the company’s stock.

WestRock Company Profile

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.