West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) Stock Has Average Price Target of $84.80

Key Points

• Analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy”: Five of eight analysts rate West Fraser Timber a buy, with an average 12-month price target of $84.80 versus the stock’s $65.77 opening price.
• Recent results fell short of expectations: The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.78 per share, missing estimates by $0.08, while revenue of $1.43 billion was below the $1.45 billion consensus.
• West Fraser maintains a quarterly dividend: The company paid $0.32 per share, equivalent to $1.28 annually and a 1.9% yield; institutional investors own approximately 40.23% of its shares.

Shares of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $84.80.

Several analysts have commented on WFG shares. TD Securities restated a "buy" rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings lowered West Fraser Timber from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded West Fraser Timber from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of West Fraser Timber from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised West Fraser Timber from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the company from $75.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 15th.

West Fraser Timber Stock Performance

WFG opened at $65.77 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. West Fraser Timber has a 52-week low of $57.34 and a 52-week high of $76.99. The company has a market cap of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.26 and a beta of 1.06. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $68.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.01.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported ($0.78) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.70) by ($0.08). West Fraser Timber had a negative return on equity of 10.84% and a negative net margin of 22.98%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.45 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that West Fraser Timber will post -3.80 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 29th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 29th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. West Fraser Timber's dividend payout ratio is currently -8.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WFG. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in West Fraser Timber during the 2nd quarter worth about $110,334,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber during the 2nd quarter worth $86,416,000. Atlas FRM LLC purchased a new stake in West Fraser Timber during the 2nd quarter worth about $50,090,600. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 171.7% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 736,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,836,000 after purchasing an additional 465,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,450,867 shares of the company's stock valued at $225,306,000 after buying an additional 321,102 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.23% of the company's stock.

About West Fraser Timber

West Fraser Timber Co Ltd. is a diversified wood products company that manufactures and sells building materials for residential, commercial and industrial applications. Its principal products include lumber, oriented strand board, laminated veneer lumber and other engineered wood products used in construction, remodeling and manufacturing.

The company operates wood product manufacturing facilities and manages timber resources across Canada and the United States, with a significant presence in Western Canada and the U.S.

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