Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $41.20 Million Stock Position in Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Smurfit Westrock Ltd (NYSE:SW) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 787,732 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 56,390 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Smurfit Westrock were worth $41,198,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new position in Smurfit Westrock in the fourth quarter worth $409,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its holdings in Smurfit Westrock by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 250,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,514,000 after acquiring an additional 3,127 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its position in Smurfit Westrock by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 113,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,092,000 after acquiring an additional 5,096 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association raised its stake in shares of Smurfit Westrock by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 11,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $623,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Walnut Level Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Smurfit Westrock in the fourth quarter worth about $3,501,000. 83.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Smurfit Westrock Price Performance

Shares of SW opened at $44.51 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.93 and a beta of 0.99. Smurfit Westrock Ltd has a 1 year low of $38.55 and a 1 year high of $56.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $50.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.64. 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 (NYSE:SW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.33). Smurfit Westrock had a net margin of 0.63% and a return on equity of 6.16%. On average, equities analysts predict that Smurfit Westrock Ltd will post 3.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Smurfit Westrock Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.4308 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. This is a boost from Smurfit Westrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Smurfit Westrock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 312.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Smurfit Westrock news, insider Alvaro Henao sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.90, for a total value of $215,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 44,361 shares in the company, valued at $2,391,057.90. This represents a 8.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ken Bowles sold 24,225 shares of Smurfit Westrock stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.06, for a total value of $1,333,828.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 111,458 shares in the company, valued at $6,136,877.48. This trade represents a 17.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on SW shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Smurfit Westrock from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Argus assumed coverage on Smurfit Westrock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $62.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Smurfit Westrock from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays lifted 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. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Smurfit Westrock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Smurfit Westrock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.70.

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.