WestRock (NYSE:WRK) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of WestRock (NYSE:WRK) in a report released on Wednesday. The firm issued a hold rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on WRK. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of WestRock in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Seaport Res Ptn cut WestRock from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on WestRock from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an equal weight rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of WestRock in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $43.00.

WestRock Price Performance

NYSE:WRK opened at $47.25 on Wednesday. WestRock has a 12 month low of $26.85 and a 12 month high of $49.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $47.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $12.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 1.10.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.15). WestRock had a positive return on equity of 6.87% and a negative net margin of 8.58%. The firm had revenue of $4.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. WestRock’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that WestRock will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at WestRock

In related news, insider Vicki L. Lostetter sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.77, for a total value of $149,695.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,117 shares in the company, valued at $3,939,844.09. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. 626 Financial LLC lifted its holdings in WestRock by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. 626 Financial LLC now owns 18,972 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in WestRock by 2.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,143 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $435,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Czech National Bank raised its position in WestRock by 0.7% in the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 45,213 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in WestRock by 59.0% in the fourth 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 period. Finally, Wahed Invest LLC raised its position in WestRock by 9.0% in the third quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. 83.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.