Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in WestRock (NYSE:WRK)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in WestRock (NYSE:WRK) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 300,048 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,515 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in WestRock were worth $12,458,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WRK. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in WestRock in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in WestRock by 268.7% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC raised its stake in WestRock by 198.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in WestRock by 59.0% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in WestRock in the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.38% of the company’s stock.

WestRock Stock Performance

NYSE WRK opened at $54.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $13.91 billion, a PE ratio of 45.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. WestRock has a twelve month low of $27.12 and a twelve month high of $54.14. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.44.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $4.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.75 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that WestRock will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

WestRock Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $0.3025 per share. This represents a $1.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 13th. WestRock’s payout ratio is 101.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on WRK shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of WestRock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial upped their target price on WestRock from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Seaport Res Ptn cut WestRock from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com started coverage on WestRock in a report on Saturday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on WestRock from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John L. O’neal sold 6,965 shares of the 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 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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other WestRock news, EVP Denise R. Singleton sold 9,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 74,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,856,721.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 60,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,113,471.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

WestRock 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.