WestRock (NYSE:WRK) Receives $42.40 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

WestRock (NYSE:WRK - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $42.40.

WRK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $45.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of WestRock in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on WestRock in a research note on Sunday. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of WestRock from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of WestRock from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of WestRock in a research report on Friday, February 2nd.

WestRock Price Performance

WRK traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $49.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,253,373 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,170,331. The stock has a market cap of $12.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.34, a P/E/G ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 1.10. The business's 50-day moving average price is $44.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. WestRock has a 12 month low of $26.85 and a 12 month high of $49.67.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.15). WestRock had a negative net margin of 8.58% and a positive return on equity of 6.87%. The business had revenue of $4.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.55 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that WestRock will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WestRock Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a $0.3025 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $1.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. WestRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -18.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WestRock

In other news, insider Vicki L. Lostetter sold 3,500 shares of WestRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.77, for a total value of $149,695.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 92,117 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,939,844.09. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of WestRock

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in WestRock by 0.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,619,872 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,440,053,000 after buying an additional 252,490 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in WestRock by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 26,528,567 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $808,325,000 after purchasing an additional 2,320,073 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in WestRock by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,986,307 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $348,442,000 after purchasing an additional 1,538,825 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in WestRock by 59.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,318,827 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $283,947,000 after purchasing an additional 3,459,641 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in WestRock during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $194,739,000. 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.