Westrock Coffee (NASDAQ:WEST) Shares Gap Up on Insider Buying Activity

Westrock Coffee (NASDAQ:WEST) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $6.55, but opened at $6.83. Westrock Coffee shares last traded at $6.80, with a volume of 45,419 shares changing hands.

Specifically, COO William A. Ford bought 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.45 per share, for a total transaction of $96,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 476,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,071,425.50. This represents a 3.25 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on WEST. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Westrock Coffee in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of Westrock Coffee in a research report on Friday, March 14th.

Westrock Coffee Stock Up 0.6 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $6.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $620.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.66 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.41, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Institutional Trading of Westrock Coffee

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Atom Investors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the third quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westrock Coffee in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,000. 45.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westrock Coffee Company Profile

Westrock Coffee Company, LLC operates as an integrated coffee, tea, flavors, extracts, and ingredients solutions provider in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Beverage Solutions, and Sustainable Sourcing & Traceability (SS&T). The Beverage Solutions segment provides various packaging, including branded and private label coffee in bags, fractional packs, and single serve cups, as well as extract solutions for applications in cold brew and ready-to-drink offerings.