Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. Has $2.86 Million Stock Holdings in WestRock (NYSE:WRK)

Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. reduced its holdings in WestRock (NYSE:WRK - Free Report) by 76.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,868 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 229,757 shares during the period. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in WestRock were worth $2,859,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. 626 Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of WestRock by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. 626 Financial LLC now owns 18,972 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $788,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of WestRock by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,143 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of WestRock by 59.0% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 862 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC grew its stake in shares of WestRock by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in WestRock by 0.5% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 69,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,502,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. 83.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WestRock Stock Performance

WRK traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $51.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,009,155 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,357,294. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.35. The stock has a market cap of $13.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.39, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 1.10. WestRock has a twelve month low of $26.85 and a twelve month high of $52.13.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $4.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.75 billion. WestRock had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 5.85%. WestRock's quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that WestRock will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

WestRock Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.3025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $1.21 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. WestRock's payout ratio is 101.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Argus lifted their target price on shares of WestRock from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of WestRock from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. StockNews.com began coverage on WestRock in a report on Friday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of WestRock in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on WestRock from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Denise R. Singleton sold 9,700 shares of WestRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.46, for a total transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, 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 transaction, the insider now owns 60,491 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,113,471.77. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Denise R. Singleton sold 9,700 shares of WestRock stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,165 shares of company stock valued at $1,007,346 over the last three months. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About WestRock

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.