Salem Investment Counselors Inc. Reduces Position in Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW)

Salem Investment Counselors Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 586,932 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,732 shares during the quarter. Smurfit Westrock accounts for 1.0% of Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Smurfit Westrock were worth $31,612,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Private Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at about $9,405,000. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at approximately $597,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at approximately $520,000. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at approximately $77,207,000. Finally, Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the third quarter valued at approximately $520,000. 83.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smurfit Westrock Stock Up 0.2 %

SW traded up $0.12 during trading on Monday, reaching $51.89. The stock had a trading volume of 575,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,487,617. The stock has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 288.29 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Smurfit Westrock Ltd has a 1-year low of $38.55 and a 1-year high of $56.99. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.55.

Smurfit Westrock Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.3025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.21 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 672.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Smurfit Westrock

In other Smurfit Westrock news, insider Saverio Mayer sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.84, for a total transaction of $1,371,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 149,911 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,221,119.24. The trade was a 14.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on SW. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Smurfit Westrock from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Argus initiated coverage on Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Smurfit Westrock from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Smurfit Westrock from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Smurfit Westrock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.56.

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.