Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $33.16 Million Stock Holdings in WestRock (NYSE:WRK)

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its stake in WestRock (NYSE:WRK) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 798,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,438 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.31% of WestRock worth $33,158,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WRK. CWM LLC grew its holdings in WestRock by 17.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,936 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of WestRock by 77.2% during the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,761 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 7,300 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of WestRock by 28.0% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,114 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of WestRock by 47.7% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 44,792 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,604,000 after buying an additional 14,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of WestRock by 0.4% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 99,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,573,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. 83.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WestRock news, insider Vicki L. Lostetter sold 3,500 shares of WestRock stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.77, for a total value of $149,695.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 92,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,939,844.09. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

WestRock Stock Performance

Shares of WRK stock opened at $48.19 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. WestRock has a 52 week low of $26.85 and a 52 week high of $49.67. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.38.

WestRock (NYSE:WRK) last announced 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). The company had revenue of $4.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.79 billion. WestRock had a positive return on equity of 6.87% and a negative net margin of 8.58%. The business’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.55 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WestRock will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WRK shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of WestRock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $45.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of WestRock in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of WestRock from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of WestRock from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of WestRock in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $43.00.

About WestRock

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.