Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Purchases 3,249 Shares of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) by 1.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 232,019 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,249 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in West Fraser Timber were worth $20,053,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 3.6% during the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 6,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its stake in West Fraser Timber by 8.6% in the first quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 4,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd boosted its stake in West Fraser Timber by 100.0% in the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its holdings in shares of West Fraser Timber by 1.4% in the first quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 36,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,116,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in West Fraser Timber during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. 40.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Fraser Timber Trading Up 3.7 %

Shares of NYSE WFG traded up $3.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $87.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 192,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,286. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a one year low of $64.11 and a one year high of $89.57. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market cap of $6.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -72.59 and a beta of 1.16.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. West Fraser Timber had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 3.83%. West Fraser Timber’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.03) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 26th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 26th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. West Fraser Timber’s dividend payout ratio is presently -105.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on WFG. TD Securities raised their price objective on shares of West Fraser Timber from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of West Fraser Timber from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $106.75.

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.