Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $53.64, but opened at $50.96. Smurfit Westrock shares last traded at $50.96, with a volume of 1,423,219 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.33). Smurfit Westrock had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.98%.

Smurfit Westrock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $0.4308 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. This is a boost from Smurfit Westrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 955.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SW shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Smurfit Westrock from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Truist Financial began coverage on Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Argus started coverage on Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Smurfit Westrock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Saverio Mayer sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.84, for a total transaction of $1,371,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 149,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,221,119.24. The trade was a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Smurfit Westrock

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock during the fourth quarter worth $1,300,041,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in Smurfit Westrock during the third quarter worth $967,582,000. Geode Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Smurfit Westrock in the 3rd quarter valued at $627,244,000. FMR LLC bought a new stake in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at about $431,653,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $386,712,000. 83.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smurfit Westrock Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $26.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 283.18 and a beta of 1.02.

Smurfit Westrock Company Profile

Smurfit Westrock Plc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and sells containerboard, corrugated containers, and other paper-based packaging products in Ireland and internationally. The company produces containerboard that it converts into corrugated containers or sells to third parties, as well as produces other types of paper, such as consumer packaging board, sack paper, graphic paper, solid board and graphic board, and other paper-based packaging products, such as consumer packaging, solid board packaging, paper sacks, and other packaging products, including bag-in-box.