296,043 Shares in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. $WFG Acquired by Robotti Robert

Robotti Robert bought a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 296,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,021,000. West Fraser Timber comprises 3.2% of Robotti Robert’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 820.9% in the fourth quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 94,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,803,000 after purchasing an additional 84,550 shares during the last quarter. NewGen Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber during the first quarter valued at $6,529,000. Amundi boosted its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 43.2% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 192,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,537,000 after buying an additional 57,919 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in West Fraser Timber in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,020,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,450,867 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,306,000 after buying an additional 321,102 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.23% of the company’s stock.

West Fraser Timber Stock Down 1.7%

West Fraser Timber stock opened at $67.24 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of -4.36 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 2.06. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a one year low of $57.34 and a one year high of $76.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $68.46 and a 200 day moving average of $66.74.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported ($0.78) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.70) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.45 billion. West Fraser Timber had a negative net margin of 22.98% and a negative return on equity of 10.84%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post -3.77 EPS for the current year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 25th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 25th. West Fraser Timber’s dividend payout ratio is -8.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Fraser Timber from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a report on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of West Fraser Timber from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of West Fraser Timber from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, West Fraser Timber has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.20.

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.