Argus Increases WestRock (NYSE:WRK) Price Target to $57.00

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) had its price target upped by research analysts at Argus from $50.00 to $57.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Argus’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 10.42% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of WestRock from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of WestRock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of WestRock in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on WestRock from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.60.

WestRock Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of WestRock stock opened at $51.62 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.04. The stock has a market cap of $13.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.38, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 1.10. WestRock has a 1-year low of $26.85 and a 1-year high of $52.07.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.14. WestRock had a return on equity of 5.85% and a net margin of 1.57%. The company had revenue of $4.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that WestRock will post 1.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John L. O’neal sold 6,965 shares of the firm’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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,113,471.77. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,946 shares in the company, valued at $3,856,721.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John L. O’neal sold 6,965 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.47, for a total value of $358,488.55. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 60,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,113,471.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,165 shares of company stock worth $1,007,346 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WestRock

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WRK. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in WestRock by 7.4% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 103,846 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,718,000 after acquiring an additional 7,139 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of WestRock by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 125,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,484,000 after purchasing an additional 2,702 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of WestRock by 36.8% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 107,031 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,832,000 after purchasing an additional 28,777 shares in the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden increased its holdings in WestRock by 4,688.9% in the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 86,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,086,000 after buying an additional 84,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in WestRock in the third quarter valued at $1,614,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.