Sound Shore Management Inc. CT Invests $60.14 Million in Smurfit Westrock PLC $SW

Sound Shore Management Inc. CT acquired a new stake in shares of Smurfit Westrock PLC (NYSE:SW) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,509,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,139,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in Smurfit Westrock during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 187.6% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC acquired a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 83.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Smurfit Westrock Stock Up 0.2%

Smurfit Westrock stock opened at $44.39 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $42.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.95. Smurfit Westrock PLC has a 52 week low of $32.73 and a 52 week high of $52.65.

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.03). Smurfit Westrock had a net margin of 1.22% and a return on equity of 4.96%. The company had revenue of $7.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Smurfit Westrock PLC will post 2.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Smurfit Westrock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $0.4523 dividend. This represents a $1.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Smurfit Westrock’s payout ratio is currently 251.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Smurfit Westrock from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Smurfit Westrock from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $57.00 price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.83.

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.