West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Royal Bank Of Canada Analyst Says

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) had its target price lifted by investment analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $80.00 to $85.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price points to a potential upside of 21.07% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Fraser Mackenzie cut their target price on shares of West Fraser Timber from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research cut West Fraser Timber from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Raymond James Financial downgraded West Fraser Timber from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $85.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. TD Cowen cut their price target on West Fraser Timber from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a report on Monday, April 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.60.

West Fraser Timber Price Performance

West Fraser Timber stock traded down $1.45 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 46,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 212,373. West Fraser Timber has a 52 week low of $57.34 and a 52 week high of $76.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $66.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.47. The stock has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of -4.67 and a beta of 1.00.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($2.40) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.23) by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. West Fraser Timber had a negative return on equity of 9.67% and a negative net margin of 21.86%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that West Fraser Timber will post -3.99 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On West Fraser Timber

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 72.2% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. EFG International AG bought a new position in West Fraser Timber during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 177.0% in the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Aegis Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber in the 1st quarter worth approximately $205,000. Finally, Jain Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Fraser Timber in the 3rd quarter valued at $224,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.23% of the company’s stock.

About West Fraser Timber

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.