Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Acquires 11,903 Shares of Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. $WPM

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its stake in Wheaton Precious Metals by 17.6% in the first quarter, buying 11,903 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 79,403 shares worth about $9.83 million.
• Institutional ownership of Wheaton Precious Metals remains high, with major investors like Vanguard, Van ECK, Capital International Investors, and Norges Bank also adjusting positions; overall, institutions own 70.34% of the stock.
• Analysts remain generally positive despite some target-price cuts, with 12 Buy ratings and 1 Hold rating, and a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $161.09.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its stake in Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM - Free Report) by 17.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,403 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,903 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals were worth $9,828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,079,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,242,969,000 after purchasing an additional 289,939 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Wheaton Precious Metals by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 14,469,877 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,700,517,000 after buying an additional 1,402,092 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,595,725 shares of the company's stock worth $892,650,000 after buying an additional 93,599 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Wheaton Precious Metals during the fourth quarter worth about $864,977,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 7,285,275 shares of the company's stock worth $857,598,000 after buying an additional 33,221 shares during the period. 70.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Wheaton Precious Metals from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $182.00 to $177.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 6th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals in a report on Thursday, April 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $163.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $161.09.

Wheaton Precious Metals Price Performance

NYSE WPM opened at $104.16 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $47.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.55. The stock's 50-day moving average is $120.54 and its 200-day moving average is $132.05. Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. has a one year low of $87.96 and a one year high of $165.76.

Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.04. Wheaton Precious Metals had a return on equity of 20.20% and a net margin of 65.55%.The business had revenue of $901.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $868.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. Wheaton Precious Metals's quarterly revenue was up 91.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Wheaton Precious Metals Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were given a dividend of $0.195 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.78 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Wheaton Precious Metals's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.70%.

Wheaton Precious Metals Company Profile

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. is a Canada-based precious metals streaming company that acquires and manages long-term purchase agreements for metals produced by mining companies. Rather than operating mines, Wheaton provides upfront and ongoing financing to miners in exchange for the right to purchase a portion of the metals produced — typically silver and gold, and occasionally other precious metals — at predetermined prices. This streaming business model offers investors exposure to metal production with reduced operating and capital-cost risk compared with traditional mining companies.

The company's activities center on structuring and maintaining a diversified portfolio of streaming agreements across multiple jurisdictions.

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