Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 258,093 Shares of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation $LPX

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake by 4.0%, selling 258,093 shares and leaving it with 6,155,806 shares — an 8.84% ownership stake valued at about $497.1 million.
• Louisiana‑Pacific beat the quarter with $0.38 EPS vs. $0.14 expected and $574 million in revenue, and analysts project roughly 2.7 EPS for the year.
• Insider activity was mixed: Director F. Nicholas Grasberger III bought 20,000 shares at $85.49 while CEO William Bradley Southern sold 14,166 shares at $89.29.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,155,806 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock after selling 258,093 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 8.84% of Louisiana-Pacific worth $497,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Louisiana-Pacific by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 497 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 4.5% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,139 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 1.5% during the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 11,524 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock worth $1,024,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 2.7% during the third quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 6,877 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 1.1% during the third quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 17,600 shares of the building manufacturing company's stock valued at $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 94.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Louisiana-Pacific

In other news, Director F Nicholas Grasberger III acquired 20,000 shares of Louisiana-Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $85.49 per share, with a total value of $1,709,800.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 38,954 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,330,177.46. The trade was a 105.52% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO William Bradley Southern sold 14,166 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.29, for a total transaction of $1,264,882.14. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 461,719 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,226,889.51. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on LPX. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Louisiana-Pacific from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered Louisiana-Pacific from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $104.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $101.57.

Louisiana-Pacific Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE LPX opened at $69.71 on Wednesday. Louisiana-Pacific Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $68.63 and a fifty-two week high of $102.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $75.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.22.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $574.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $569.99 million. Louisiana-Pacific had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 10.72%. On average, analysts predict that Louisiana-Pacific Corporation will post 2.7 EPS for the current year.

Louisiana-Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. Louisiana-Pacific's dividend payout ratio is currently 53.59%.

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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