First Eagle Investment Management LLC Buys 23,485,504 Shares of Weyerhaeuser Company $WY

Key Points

• First Eagle Investment Management significantly boosted its Weyerhaeuser stake by 166.1% in the fourth quarter, adding 23.5 million shares and ending with 37.6 million shares worth about $891.2 million.
• Insider buying also stood out, with directors James Calvin O'Rourke and Richard Beckwitt purchasing shares in February, signaling confidence in the company.
• Weyerhaeuser recently reported better-than-expected earnings of $0.11 per share and revenue of $1.73 billion, while also paying a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share for a 3.6% yield.

First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY - Free Report) by 166.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,621,004 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 23,485,504 shares during the period. Weyerhaeuser makes up about 1.6% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned about 5.22% of Weyerhaeuser worth $891,242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in WY. KLCM Advisors Inc. grew its position in Weyerhaeuser by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 118,350 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,804,000 after purchasing an additional 35,538 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its position in Weyerhaeuser by 20.8% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 177,393 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,202,000 after purchasing an additional 30,501 shares in the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC grew its position in Weyerhaeuser by 116.2% in the fourth quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 3,848 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 2,068 shares in the last quarter. Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. bought a new position in Weyerhaeuser in the fourth quarter valued at $7,568,000. Finally, Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC grew its position in Weyerhaeuser by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 20,850 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James Calvin O'rourke bought 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.35 per share, for a total transaction of $101,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 28,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $726,556.35. The trade was a 16.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard Beckwitt purchased 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.70 per share, with a total value of $514,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 24,066 shares in the company, valued at $618,496.20. This represents a 491.88% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Weyerhaeuser Price Performance

Shares of Weyerhaeuser stock opened at $23.43 on Tuesday. Weyerhaeuser Company has a twelve month low of $21.16 and a twelve month high of $27.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.90.

Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. Weyerhaeuser had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 1.45%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Analysts forecast that Weyerhaeuser Company will post 0.28 EPS for the current year.

Weyerhaeuser Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Weyerhaeuser's payout ratio is 155.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WY. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Weyerhaeuser from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Weyerhaeuser from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $31.00 price target on shares of Weyerhaeuser in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Weyerhaeuser from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Weyerhaeuser from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.50.

About Weyerhaeuser

Weyerhaeuser Company NYSE: WY is a leading integrated forest products company whose core businesses are timberland ownership and forest products manufacturing. The company owns and manages large tracts of timberland and harvests, processes and sells wood and wood-derived products used primarily in residential and industrial construction. Its manufacturing operations produce a range of building materials, including lumber, engineered wood products and wood panels, alongside fiber-based products that serve multiple commercial applications.

Founded in 1900 by Frederick Weyerhaeuser and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company has a long history in the North American forest products industry.

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