Alesco Advisors LLC An ESL Co Buys Shares of 14,157 West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. $WFG

Alesco Advisors LLC An ESL Co acquired a new stake in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 14,157 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $924,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WFG. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 72.2% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. EFG International AG bought a new stake in West Fraser Timber during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 177.0% during the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Jain Global LLC acquired a new stake in West Fraser Timber during the 3rd quarter worth about $224,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of West Fraser Timber in the 4th quarter worth about $229,000. 40.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

West Fraser Timber Stock Down 4.8%

WFG stock opened at $64.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of -4.32 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a twelve month low of $57.34 and a twelve month high of $76.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $66.78 and its 200-day moving average is $66.62.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported ($2.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.23) by ($1.17). West Fraser Timber had a negative return on equity of 9.67% and a negative net margin of 21.86%.The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post -3.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Fraser Timber Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 25th. West Fraser Timber’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -8.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded West Fraser Timber from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $86.00 target price on shares of West Fraser Timber in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research note on Friday. 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 report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Fraser Mackenzie reduced their price objective on shares of West Fraser Timber from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.60.

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.