Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Position in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. $WFG

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. by 1%, now owning approximately 2.88 million shares valued at $220.93 million.
• Institutional investors collectively own 40.23% of West Fraser Timber's stock, with several firms significantly increasing their positions in recent quarters.
• West Fraser Timber recently posted a loss of ($0.38) earnings per share, missing analysts' expectations, and reported revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG - Free Report) by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,876,409 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 29,746 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 3.73% of West Fraser Timber worth $220,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber during the fourth quarter worth $52,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 7,588.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 683 shares during the period. Natixis raised its position in West Fraser Timber by 61.8% during the fourth quarter. Natixis now owns 1,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 6.9% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,806 shares of the company's stock worth $216,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in West Fraser Timber by 21.5% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,057 shares of the company's stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.23% of the company's stock.

West Fraser Timber Stock Up 4.8%

Shares of NYSE WFG traded up $3.4440 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $75.9040. 272,206 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 208,013. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $73.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $75.32. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a one year low of $68.63 and a one year high of $102.40. The company has a market cap of $5.82 billion, a PE ratio of -43.37 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.89.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported ($0.38) EPS 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 net margin of 2.18% and a negative return on equity of 0.85%. On average, equities analysts predict that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post 4.45 EPS for the current year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 26th. West Fraser Timber's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -73.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

About West Fraser Timber

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.