Candriam S.C.A. Acquires Shares of 27,688 West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. $WFG

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. has acquired a new stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., purchasing 27,688 shares valued at approximately $2,126,000.
• West Fraser Timber recently reported a loss of ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' expectations and generating revenue of $1.53 billion.
• The company announced a $0.32 quarterly dividend, resulting in a 1.7% dividend yield, although its payout ratio stands at negative 73.14%.

Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 27,688 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,126,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,589 shares of the company's stock worth $2,129,000 after purchasing an additional 1,969 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber during the fourth quarter worth about $487,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 138,435 shares of the company's stock worth $11,982,000 after acquiring an additional 14,189 shares in the last quarter. Natixis boosted its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 61.8% during the fourth quarter. Natixis now owns 1,605 shares of the company's stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,162,049 shares of the company's stock worth $187,126,000 after purchasing an additional 780,313 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.23% of the company's stock.

West Fraser Timber Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of West Fraser Timber stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Friday, reaching $72.98. 53,987 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 210,694. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock's fifty day moving average is $73.57 and its 200 day moving average is $75.00. The firm has a market cap of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -41.63 and a beta of 1.15. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a 1 year low of $68.63 and a 1 year high of $102.40.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported ($0.38) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.74). The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. West Fraser Timber had a negative return on equity of 0.85% and a negative net margin of 2.18%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. West Fraser Timber's payout ratio is presently -73.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on WFG. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded West Fraser Timber from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, TD Securities decreased their price target on shares of West Fraser Timber from $98.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $100.00.

West Fraser Timber 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.