First Eagle Investment Management LLC Acquires 21,783 Shares of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation $LPX

Key Points

• First Eagle Investment Management increased its stake in Louisiana-Pacific by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 21,783 more shares and bringing its total holdings to 195,699 shares worth about $15.8 million.
• Louisiana-Pacific shares fell 2.8% to $73.02, even as the company reported quarterly earnings of $0.38 per share, beating estimates, and revenue of $574 million, slightly ahead of expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share payable May 28, while analysts remain generally positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $97.25.

First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX - Free Report) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 195,699 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock after acquiring an additional 21,783 shares during the quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.28% of Louisiana-Pacific worth $15,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPX. Channing Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Louisiana-Pacific by 12.0% during the third quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 840,500 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $74,670,000 after purchasing an additional 90,388 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in Louisiana-Pacific by 48.9% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 95,161 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $8,454,000 after purchasing an additional 31,244 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Louisiana-Pacific by 1.9% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,549,853 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $137,666,000 after purchasing an additional 28,535 shares during the last quarter. Eminence Capital LP grew its holdings in Louisiana-Pacific by 7.9% during the third quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 3,115,959 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $276,822,000 after purchasing an additional 228,521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in Louisiana-Pacific by 27.5% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 57,876 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $5,142,000 after purchasing an additional 12,490 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.73% of the company's stock.

Louisiana-Pacific Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of LPX stock opened at $73.02 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.60. Louisiana-Pacific Corporation has a one year low of $66.68 and a one year high of $102.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $74.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 3.26 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The building manufacturing company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $574.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $569.99 million. Louisiana-Pacific had a return on equity of 7.03% and a net margin of 3.20%.Louisiana-Pacific's quarterly revenue was down 20.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Louisiana-Pacific Corporation will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Louisiana-Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. Louisiana-Pacific's payout ratio is currently 94.92%.

Insider Activity at Louisiana-Pacific

In related news, Director Lizanne M. Bruce sold 1,300 shares of Louisiana-Pacific stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.59, for a total value of $102,167.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,160 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,348,604.40. The trade was a 7.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO William Bradley Southern sold 14,166 shares of Louisiana-Pacific stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.29, for a total value of $1,264,882.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 461,719 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,226,889.51. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on LPX shares. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $115.00 to $107.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday. Zacks Research upgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $94.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD upgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $86.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.25.

Louisiana-Pacific Profile

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation NYSE: LPX is a leading manufacturer of building materials and engineered wood products for residential, industrial and light commercial construction. The company produces a diverse portfolio of products, including oriented strand board (OSB), engineered wood siding, trim, molding, sheathing panels and subflooring. Its flagship product lines, such as LP® SmartSide® trim and siding, are designed to offer enhanced durability, moisture resistance and ease of installation, helping builders and homeowners achieve long-lasting performance in a variety of climates.

Founded in 1973 as a spin-off from Georgia-Pacific, Louisiana-Pacific established its reputation by pioneering innovative manufacturing techniques for OSB, becoming one of the first companies to bring the product to market in the 1980s.

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