Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) Trading Down 2.7% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) traded down 2.7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $44.43 and last traded at $44.49. 1,319,249 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 4,531,461 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.71.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Argus assumed coverage on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.70.

Smurfit Westrock Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $51.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $23.20 billion, a PE ratio of 80.78 and a beta of 0.99.

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.33). Smurfit Westrock had a net margin of 0.63% and a return on equity of 6.16%. On average, equities analysts expect that Smurfit Westrock Ltd will post 3.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Smurfit Westrock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.4308 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.88%. This is a positive change from Smurfit Westrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 312.73%.

Insider Transactions at Smurfit Westrock

In other news, insider Alvaro Henao sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.90, for a total value of $215,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 44,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,391,057.90. This trade represents a 8.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ken Bowles sold 24,225 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.06, for a total transaction of $1,333,828.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,136,877.48. This represents a 17.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smurfit Westrock

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Smurfit Westrock during the fourth quarter worth about $5,252,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Smurfit Westrock by 29.1% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 42,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 9,581 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Smurfit Westrock during the third quarter worth about $597,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. purchased a new position in Smurfit Westrock during the third quarter worth about $520,000. Finally, Citigroup Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Smurfit Westrock during the third quarter valued at about $77,207,000. 83.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smurfit Westrock Company Profile

Smurfit Westrock Plc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and sells containerboard, corrugated containers, and other paper-based packaging products in Ireland and internationally. The company produces containerboard that it converts into corrugated containers or sells to third parties, as well as produces other types of paper, such as consumer packaging board, sack paper, graphic paper, solid board and graphic board, and other paper-based packaging products, such as consumer packaging, solid board packaging, paper sacks, and other packaging products, including bag-in-box.