West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) Lowered to "Market Perform" Rating by Raymond James Financial

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial downgraded West Fraser Timber from "outperform" to "market perform" and set a $75 price target, implying roughly a 15.45% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $81.33, based on a mix of 2 Buy, 3 Hold and 1 Sell ratings.
• West Fraser reported Q results with EPS of -$2.42 (better than the -$2.71 estimate) but remains unprofitable (net margin -17.15%, negative ROE); shares trade around $65 and the company has a market cap near $4.94 billion.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Raymond James Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $75.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James Financial's target price would indicate a potential upside of 15.45% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on WFG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research report on Monday. Zacks Research raised shares of West Fraser Timber from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $81.00 target price on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.33.

West Fraser Timber Stock Performance

Shares of WFG opened at $64.97 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 2.13. The company has a market capitalization of $4.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.33 and a beta of 1.09. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $65.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.95. West Fraser Timber has a 1 year low of $57.34 and a 1 year high of $78.55.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported ($2.42) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.71) by $0.29. West Fraser Timber had a negative net margin of 17.15% and a negative return on equity of 5.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that West Fraser Timber will post -2.5 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Fraser Timber

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 867,974 shares of the company's stock worth $56,511,000 after purchasing an additional 21,224 shares during the period. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in West Fraser Timber during the fourth quarter worth approximately $417,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in West Fraser Timber by 500.0% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 530,573 shares of the company's stock worth $32,424,000 after buying an additional 442,138 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 109,185 shares of the company's stock worth $6,672,000 after acquiring an additional 3,352 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,836,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,668,000 after acquiring an additional 116,161 shares during the period. 40.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

West Fraser Timber Company Profile

West Fraser Timber Co Ltd. NYSE: WFG is a leading North American diversified wood products company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company operates a broad portfolio of manufacturing facilities that produce lumber, engineered wood products such as laminated veneer lumber (LVL), oriented strand board (OSB) and plywood, as well as medium density fibreboard (MDF), particleboard, pulp and paper. West Fraser's integrated production model spans harvesting, milling and finishing, allowing it to serve a wide range of residential, commercial and industrial construction markets.

Founded in 1955 as West Fraser Mills, the company has grown through both organic investment and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest lumber producers in the world.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.