Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Purchases New Position in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG)

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 9,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $748,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WFG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in West Fraser Timber by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,813,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,820,000 after buying an additional 28,399 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 18.4% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 989,374 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,053,000 after acquiring an additional 153,600 shares during the last quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. lifted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 692,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,229,000 after acquiring an additional 91,490 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans purchased a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber during the 2nd quarter worth about $52,645,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in West Fraser Timber during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,886,000. 40.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Fraser Timber Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFG opened at $96.47 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $87.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.33. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a one year low of $64.11 and a one year high of $97.41. The firm has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a PE ratio of -79.73 and a beta of 1.16.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.09). West Fraser Timber had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 3.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.03) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

West Fraser Timber Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.237 per share. This represents a $0.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 26th. West Fraser Timber’s payout ratio is -77.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on West Fraser Timber from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on West Fraser Timber from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $105.60.

About West Fraser Timber

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.