Westrock Coffee (NASDAQ:WEST) Shares Up 7.9% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Westrock Coffee's shares increased by 7.9% during trading on Thursday, reaching a last traded price of $5.45, but trading volume was down 51% from its average.
• Wall Street analysts have given Westrock Coffee a consensus rating of "Buy" with an average price target of $10.60, indicating potential for growth.
• Insider activity showed Director Joe T. Ford acquired 5,000 shares at an average cost of $5.30, increasing his position in the company by 1.22%.

Westrock Coffee Company (NASDAQ:WEST - Get Free Report) shares rose 7.9% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $5.45 and last traded at $5.45. Approximately 166,565 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 339,391 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WEST. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of Westrock Coffee in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Westrock Coffee from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Westrock Coffee presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $10.60.

Westrock Coffee Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $6.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.42.

Westrock Coffee (NASDAQ:WEST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.14) by $0.02. Westrock Coffee had a negative net margin of 9.28% and a negative return on equity of 64.79%. The company had revenue of $280.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $238.34 million. Equities research analysts expect that Westrock Coffee Company will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Westrock Coffee

In related news, Director Joe T. Ford purchased 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.30 per share, with a total value of $26,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 413,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,193,754.80. This trade represents a 1.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 27.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westrock Coffee

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEST. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Westrock Coffee by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,950,639 shares of the company's stock worth $21,304,000 after acquiring an additional 137,646 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Westrock Coffee during the 1st quarter valued at about $680,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Westrock Coffee during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $336,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Westrock Coffee by 198.9% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 589,450 shares of the company's stock worth $3,784,000 after buying an additional 392,214 shares during the period. Finally, Sovereign s Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the 4th quarter worth approximately $465,000. 45.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Westrock Coffee

Westrock Coffee Company, LLC operates as an integrated coffee, tea, flavors, extracts, and ingredients solutions provider in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Beverage Solutions, and Sustainable Sourcing & Traceability (SS&T). The Beverage Solutions segment provides various packaging, including branded and private label coffee in bags, fractional packs, and single serve cups, as well as extract solutions for applications in cold brew and ready-to-drink offerings.