Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Purchases 54,490 Shares of Smurfit Westrock PLC $SW

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Smurfit Westrock PLC (NYSE:SW) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,193,682 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,490 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Smurfit Westrock were worth $52,641,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SW. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Smurfit Westrock during the 3rd quarter valued at $5,965,000. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 100,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,438,000 after buying an additional 1,839 shares in the last quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC now owns 23,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,043,000 after buying an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board grew its position in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board now owns 15,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $706,000 after buying an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 7.2% during the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 16,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $723,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the period. 83.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Smurfit Westrock Price Performance

SW opened at $45.17 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.69 billion, a PE ratio of 50.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business’s 50-day moving average is $43.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.52. Smurfit Westrock PLC has a 1 year low of $32.73 and a 1 year high of $52.65.

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.15). Smurfit Westrock had a net margin of 1.50% and a return on equity of 4.27%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.58 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Smurfit Westrock PLC will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Smurfit Westrock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.4523 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $1.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio is presently 203.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on SW shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Smurfit Westrock from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 target price on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Smurfit Westrock from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Smurfit Westrock from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.15.

About Smurfit Westrock

Smurfit Westrock plc (NYSE:SW) is a global provider of sustainable paper and packaging solutions. The company produces containerboard, corrugated packaging, folding cartons, paper bags, displays and other packaging products designed for consumer, retail, industrial and e-commerce applications. It also provides packaging design, supply-chain support and recycling services.

Smurfit Westrock was formed in July 2024 through the combination of Smurfit Kappa Group and WestRock. The transaction brought together two established packaging businesses with roots in Europe and North America.