CLW vs PKG vs SW Stock Comparison

Clearwater Paper, Packaging Corp Of America and Smurfit Westrock Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CLW Clearwater Paper Corp
$19.20 -5.8% 1M -3.7% 1Y
Market cap
$263.95M
P/E
110.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.51B
Div. yield
–
Paper Packaging Basic Materials
PKG Packaging Corp Of America
$253.80 +7.0% 1M +23.9% 1Y
Market cap
$22.64B
P/E
31.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.82B
Div. yield
–
Paper Packaging Basic Materials
6 wins
SW Smurfit Westrock plc
$42.22 -9.0% 1M -2.0% 1Y
Market cap
$22.16B
P/E
44.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$31.33B
Div. yield
–
Paper Packaging Basic Materials
5 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Packaging Corp Of America leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Packaging Corp Of America 6, Smurfit Westrock 5). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCLWPKGSWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $263.95M $22.64B $22.16B PKG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 110.0x 31.1x 44.6x PKG
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 23.2x 18.6x SW
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -3.2% +12.0% +1.7% PKG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 0.2% — 1.6% SW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -1.3% — 3.1% SW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 7.6x — 3.2x SW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -3.7% +23.9% -2.0% PKG
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -14.3%/yr +13.4%/yr -4.0%/yr PKG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 52.7% 28.0% 44.2% PKG
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 53/100 30/100 63/100 SW

Percentile Scorecard

CLWPKGSW

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCLWPKGSW
Valuation 100 #1 of 16 13 #14 of 16 73 #5 of 16
Growth 40 #10 of 16 53 #8 of 16 73 #5 of 16
Profitability 36 #10 of 15 – 50 #8 of 15
Financial Health 57 #7 of 15 – 79 #4 of 15
Shareholder Returns 31 #10 of 14 23 #11 of 14 39 #9 of 14
Overall 53 30 63
  • CLW ranked among 17 companies in Packaging
  • PKG ranked among 17 companies in Packaging
  • SW ranked among 17 companies in Packaging

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCLWPKGSWSPY
1 month -5.8%+7.0%-9.0% -0.8%
3 months +11.0%+0.5%-15.7% +3.5%
6 months +31.3%+19.4%+5.4% +7.0%
Year to date +10.3%+23.1%+9.2% +12.2%
1 year -3.7%+23.9%-2.0% +13.0%
3 years -44.4%+69.0%+35.8% +86.3%
3 years, per year -17.8%+19.1%+10.8% +23.1%
5 years -53.8%+87.4%-18.4% +68.6%
5 years, per year -14.3%+13.4%-4.0% +11.0%
10 years -63.9%+213.1%+92.7% +258.0%
10 years, per year -9.7%+12.1%+6.8% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCLWPKGSWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 52.7%28.0%44.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 50.6%25.8%40.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.920.711.46 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.070.85-0.04 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -77.8%-32.7%-55.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -17.6%-1.4%-18.6% -1.8%
52-week high $23.30$257.38$51.84 $779.14
52-week low $12.44$191.68$32.79 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCLWPKGSW
P/E now vs peer median 129.1xmedian 19.3x 30.9xmedian 19.3x 44.5xmedian 19.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 0.7x 2.3xmedian 0.7x 0.7xmedian 0.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.1xmedian 9.7x —median 9.7x 8.4xmedian 9.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 5.5xmedian 15.7x 28.1xmedian 15.7x 21.8xmedian 15.7x
P/B now vs peer median 0.4xmedian 1.4x —median 1.4x 1.2xmedian 1.4x
PEG now vs peer median -1.87median 0.82 -12.62median 0.82 —median 0.82

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCLWPKGSW
Revenue $1.51B $9.82B $31.33B
Gross profit $27.10M $2.02B $5.62B
Operating income -$24.30M $1.10B $1.48B
Net income $2.40M – $497.00M
Free cash flow $56.80M – $1.02B
EPS (diluted) $0.15 $8.17 $0.94
Cash & equivalents $35.70M – $677.00M
Total debt $567.40M – $14.16B
Shares (diluted) 16.13M 89.00M 526.00M
Enterprise value $65.65M $22.64B $19.07B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCLWPKGSW
P/E 129.1x 30.9x 44.5x
P/FCF 5.5x 28.1x 21.8x
P/Operating cash flow 2.9x – 6.7x
P/S 0.2x 2.3x 0.7x
P/B 0.4x – 1.2x
P/Tangible book 0.4x – 1.3x
EV/EBITDA 12.1x – 8.4x
EV/EBIT -34.6x – 24.1x
EV/Revenue 0.6x 2.3x 1.1x
EV/FCF 14.8x – 35.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 8.0x – 10.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.87 -12.62 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCLWPKGSW
Revenue growth (1Y) -3.2% 12.0% 1.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 43.6% 7.8% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) -76.0% 5.5% -4.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 28.2% 5.1% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 62.7% -11.6% 17.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -31.2% -0.2% –
Net income growth (1Y) -98.3% – 41.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -69.5% – –
EPS growth (1Y) -98.3% -18.0% 40.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -69.0% -2.4% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 478.1% – 52.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -9.6% – –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 142.2% – 1,094%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -10.9% – –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCLWPKGSW
Gross margin 1.8% – 17.9%
EBITDA margin 4.6% – 13.5%
Operating margin -1.6% – 4.7%
Pretax margin -3.2% – 2.3%
Net margin 0.2% – 1.6%
FCF margin 3.8% – 3.2%
Operating cash flow margin 7.0% – 10.5%
Return on equity 0.3% – 2.7%
Return on assets 0.1% – 1.1%
Return on invested capital -1.3% – 3.1%
Return on capital employed -2.1% – 3.9%
Asset turnover 0.9x – 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 43.8x – 6.6x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% – 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCLWPKGSW
Debt / assets 31.9% – 31.3%
Debt / equity 0.7x – 0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 7.6x – 3.2x
Debt / FCF 10.0x – 14.0x
Liabilities / assets 55.3% – 60.0%
Equity / assets 44.7% – 40.0%
Interest coverage – – –
Current ratio 1.5x – 1.4x
Quick ratio 0.4x – 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.1x – 0.1x
Altman Z-score 1.81 – 1.45

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCLWPKGSW
Dividend yield – 2.2% 4.2%
Net buyback yield 0.0% – -0.1%
Shareholder yield 0.0% 2.2% 4.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCLWPKGSW
Forward P/E – 23.2xFY2026 18.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-3.47FY2026 $10.92FY2026 $2.27FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +11.0%FY2026 +10.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +32.1% +67.4%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.56BFY2026 $9.55BFY2026 $33.77BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.2%FY2026 +6.2%FY2026 +8.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +6.0% +18.1% +9.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCLWPKGSW
Held by institutions 88.7% 97.9% 95.9%
Institutions holding 134 901 640
Change in shares held, QoQ +9.9% +1.6% +5.7%
Institutions buying 85 456 373
Institutions selling 33 291 191
Buyers to sellers 2.58 1.57 1.95

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CLWPKGSW
CLW 1.00 0.37 0.41
PKG 0.37 1.00 0.77
SW 0.41 0.77 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CLW, PKG and SW?

Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Clearwater Paper (CLW) $263.95M, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) $22.64B, Smurfit Westrock (SW) $22.16B.

Which stock is cheaper, CLW, PKG and SW?

Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Clearwater Paper (CLW) 110.0x, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) 31.1x, Smurfit Westrock (SW) 44.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Smurfit Westrock (SW) is cheapest (Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) 23.2x, Smurfit Westrock (SW) 18.6x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Clearwater Paper (CLW) -3.2%, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) +12.0%, Smurfit Westrock (SW) +1.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Smurfit Westrock (SW) has the highest net margin (Clearwater Paper (CLW) 0.2%, Smurfit Westrock (SW) 1.6%). On return on invested capital, Smurfit Westrock (SW) leads (Clearwater Paper (CLW) -1.3%, Smurfit Westrock (SW) 3.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) returned the most: Clearwater Paper (CLW) -3.7%, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) +23.9%, Smurfit Westrock (SW) -2.0%. Over five years, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) compounded fastest (Clearwater Paper (CLW) -14.3%/yr, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) +13.4%/yr, Smurfit Westrock (SW) -4.0%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) has been the steadiest (Clearwater Paper (CLW) 52.7%, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) 28.0%, Smurfit Westrock (SW) 44.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CLW, PKG and SW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Packaging Corp Of America (PKG) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.