West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) Given "Sell (D)" Rating at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) received a "sell (D)" rating from Weiss Ratings, which has implications for investor sentiment regarding the company's stock.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts have mixed ratings on West Fraser Timber, with some recently setting a "buy" rating while others downgraded the stock.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a loss of ($0.38) per share, missing analysts' expectations and highlighting ongoing financial challenges.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d)" rating reissued by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on WFG. TD Securities decreased their price objective on shares of West Fraser Timber from $98.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of West Fraser Timber from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of West Fraser Timber from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $100.00.

West Fraser Timber Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE WFG traded up $0.48 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $69.10. 54,587 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 212,913. West Fraser Timber has a 52-week low of $66.36 and a 52-week high of $102.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $71.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.62. The company has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.47 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.74). West Fraser Timber had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a negative return on equity of 0.85%. The company had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. Equities research analysts expect that West Fraser Timber will post 4.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Fraser Timber

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WFG. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 126,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,723,000 after purchasing an additional 11,924 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 33.3% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 16,263 shares of the company's stock worth $1,249,000 after buying an additional 4,061 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 44.5% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 112,431 shares of the company's stock worth $8,650,000 after buying an additional 34,599 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 18.3% in the first quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,900 shares of the company's stock worth $1,836,000 after buying an additional 3,700 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 10.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,394,607 shares of the company's stock worth $184,242,000 after buying an additional 232,558 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 40.23% of the company's stock.

West Fraser Timber Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.