PKG vs. SW: Packaging Corp of America vs. Smurfit Westrock Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW) are both classified in the Paper & Plastic Packaging Products & Materials sub-industry within the broader Containers & Packaging industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Profile Item	PKG	SW
Name	Packaging Corporation of America	Smurfit WestRock Plc
Country/Region	United States	Ireland
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Containers & Packaging	Containers & Packaging
GICS Sub-Industry	Paper & Plastic Packaging Products & Materials	Paper & Plastic Packaging Products & Materials
Market Capitalization	22.25 billion USD	23.13 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 28, 2000	June 17, 2008
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

PKG

GSPC

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Total Return (1Y)	31.07%	29.05%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	21.13%	14.60%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	17.23%	-0.16%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

PKG

GSPC

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	28.35%	42.69%
Beta (5Y)	0.76	0.89
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-31.78%	-53.49%
Avg. Volume (3M)	624.28K	4.66M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

PKG and SW are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.95	0.58
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.49	0.94

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Smurfit Westrock (SW) earns 2.57% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Packaging Corp of America (PKG) has no ROE this period.

PKG

Materials industry group

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%
PKG: --

SW

Materials industry group

2.57%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
SW: 2.57%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): PKG does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; SW is benchmarked against the Materials industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 7.40% and Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 1.50% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

PKG

Materials industry group

7.40%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
PKG: 7.40%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

SW

Materials industry group

1.50%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
SW: 1.50%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 14.97% and Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 6.38% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

PKG

Materials industry group

14.97%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
PKG: 14.97%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

SW

Materials industry group

6.38%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
SW: 6.38%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
ROE (TTM)	--	2.57%
ROA (TTM)	--	2.50%
Net Margin (TTM)	7.40%	1.50%
Operating Margin (TTM)	14.97%	6.38%
Gross Margin (TTM)	21.24%	17.67%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 47.70% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 7.23% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for SW.

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at -3.92% and Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 62.20% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Revenue Growth (YoY)	7.23%	47.70%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	1.97%	32.15%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-3.92%	62.20%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-8.03%	-30.01%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Short-term liquidity can only be read on one side of this pairing: Smurfit Westrock (SW) shows current ratio of 1.48 against its industry benchmark, while Packaging Corp of America (PKG) has no reading this period.

PKG

Materials industry group

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16
PKG: --

SW

Materials industry group

1.48

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
SW: 1.48
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): PKG does not report current ratio, so it has no value marker; SW is benchmarked against the Materials industry group.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 0.78 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 0.94 uses more debt funding than most peers.

PKG

Materials industry group

0.94

Max: 1.98
PKG: 0.94
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

SW

Materials industry group

0.78

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
SW: 0.78
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Current Ratio (MRQ)	--	1.48
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.94	0.78
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.92	2.96

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 2.21% and Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 4.02% offer top-quartile dividend income relative to share price within their industries.

PKG

Materials industry group

2.21%

Max: 4.52%
PKG: 2.21%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SW

Materials industry group

4.02%

Max: 4.52%
SW: 4.02%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Smurfit Westrock (SW) reports payout ratio above 100% at 198.63%, meaning dividends exceeded current-period earnings and sustainability needs extra context. Meanwhile Packaging Corp of America (PKG) reports 67.82%, ranking against industry peers normally.

PKG

Materials industry group

67.82%

Max: 83.62%
PKG: 67.82%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SW

Materials industry group

198.63%

SW: 198.63%
Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.21%	4.02%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	67.82%	198.63%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 30.79 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 48.99 sits in the richer quartile — SW needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

PKG

Materials industry group

30.79

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
PKG: 30.79
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

SW

Materials industry group

48.99

Max: 59.00
SW: 48.99
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 2.26 and Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 0.73 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

PKG

Materials industry group

2.26

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
PKG: 2.26
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

SW

Materials industry group

0.73

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
SW: 0.73
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Smurfit Westrock (SW) at 1.28 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Packaging Corp of America (PKG) at 4.74 carries an above-peer premium to book — PKG is pricier on assets.

PKG

Materials industry group

4.74

Max: 6.59
PKG: 4.74
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

SW

Materials industry group

1.28

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
SW: 1.28
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

Packaging Corp of America (PKG) vs. Smurfit Westrock (SW): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Packaging Corp of America (PKG) and Smurfit Westrock (SW)
Metric	PKG	SW
P/E Ratio (TTM)	30.79	48.99
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.26	0.73
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.74	1.28
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	--	4.26%