SG Americas Securities LLC Grows Stock Holdings in WestRock (NYSE:WRK)

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in WestRock (NYSE:WRK – Get Rating) by 141.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,615 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 12,068 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in WestRock were worth $970,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WRK. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of WestRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of WestRock by 634.2% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 558 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WestRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of WestRock by 56.1% in the 1st quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 765 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WestRock in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 84.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WRK shares. Citigroup cut shares of WestRock from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $53.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 21st. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of WestRock from $44.00 to $36.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of WestRock from $59.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 19th. StockNews.com cut shares of WestRock from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 18th. Finally, TheStreet cut shares of WestRock from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WestRock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.00.

WestRock Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of WestRock stock opened at $42.36 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. WestRock has a 12-month low of $38.28 and a 12-month high of $54.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.55.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $5.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. WestRock had a net margin of 3.93% and a return on equity of 9.32%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. Analysts predict that WestRock will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

WestRock Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 12th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. WestRock’s payout ratio is currently 33.78%.

WestRock announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase 25,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

WestRock Profile

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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 two segments, Corrugated Packaging and Consumer Packaging. The Corrugated Packaging segment produces containerboards, corrugated sheets, corrugated packaging, and preprinted linerboards to consumer and industrial products manufacturers, and corrugated box manufacturers.

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