Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Position in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,813,970 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,399 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 3.54% of West Fraser Timber worth $240,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber during the 4th quarter valued at $76,413,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 161.7% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 509,429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,597,000 after acquiring an additional 314,750 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 9.0% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,319,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $168,256,000 after acquiring an additional 191,613 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber during the fourth quarter worth about $9,558,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in West Fraser Timber by 2,668.4% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 108,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,268,000 after purchasing an additional 104,386 shares during the period. 40.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

West Fraser Timber Price Performance

West Fraser Timber stock opened at $76.84 on Tuesday. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a 52-week low of $64.11 and a 52-week high of $90.17. The company has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.50 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $78.92 and its 200 day moving average is $80.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.48. West Fraser Timber had a negative net margin of 1.39% and a positive return on equity of 2.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.52) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post 4.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 26th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. West Fraser Timber’s payout ratio is presently -105.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WFG. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $97.00 price objective on shares of West Fraser Timber in a report on Thursday, March 28th. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of West Fraser Timber from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, West Fraser Timber currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $106.25.

West Fraser Timber Company Profile

West Fraser Timber Co Ltd., a diversified wood products company, engages in manufacturing, selling, marketing, and distributing lumber, engineered wood products, pulp, newsprint, wood chips, and other residuals and renewable energy. It offers spruce-pine-fir, douglas fir-larch, hem-fir, and southern yellow pine lumber, treated wood products, medium density fiberboard panels and plywood, oriented strand board, and laminated veneer lumber wood products, as well as particleboards.