Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) Holdings Trimmed by SWS Partners

SWS Partners reduced its position in shares of Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,508 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,217 shares during the period. Smurfit Westrock makes up about 1.0% of SWS Partners’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. SWS Partners’ holdings in Smurfit Westrock were worth $3,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SW. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Smurfit Westrock during the 4th quarter valued at $5,252,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 9,581 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the 3rd quarter valued at $597,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the 3rd quarter valued at $520,000. Finally, Citigroup Inc. purchased a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the 3rd quarter worth about $77,207,000. 83.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Smurfit Westrock from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Argus assumed coverage on Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Alvaro Henao sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ken Bowles sold 24,225 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.06, for a total value of $1,333,828.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 111,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,136,877.48. This trade represents a 17.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Smurfit Westrock Price Performance

SW opened at $50.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $53.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Smurfit Westrock Ltd has a 1 year low of $38.55 and a 1 year high of $56.99. The stock has a market cap of $26.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.04 and a beta of 1.02.

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.33). Smurfit Westrock had a net margin of 0.63% and a return on equity of 6.16%. Analysts forecast that Smurfit Westrock Ltd will post 3.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Smurfit Westrock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.4308 per share. This is a positive change from Smurfit Westrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio is 312.73%.

About Smurfit Westrock

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.