Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Purchases Shares of 17,400 UFP Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFPI)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of UFP Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:UFPI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 17,400 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,185,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of UFPI. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of UFP Industries by 13.3% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 12,877 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $994,000 after acquiring an additional 1,513 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UFP Industries by 4.7% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 64,448 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,972,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UFP Industries by 9.2% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,374 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $722,000 after purchasing an additional 792 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of UFP Industries by 2.1% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 17,664 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,445,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UFP Industries by 54.6% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 32,217 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,486,000 after purchasing an additional 11,377 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.81% of the company’s stock.

UFP Industries Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UFPI opened at $111.64 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 4.41, a quick ratio of 3.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. UFP Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $76.01 and a 1 year high of $128.65. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.82. The firm has a market cap of $6.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 1.49.

UFP Industries (NASDAQ:UFPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The construction company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.68 by ($0.06). UFP Industries had a return on equity of 17.86% and a net margin of 7.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. UFP Industries’s revenue was down 20.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that UFP Industries, Inc. will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UFP Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This is an increase from UFP Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. UFP Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 16.38%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Matthew J. Missad sold 5,018 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.05, for a total value of $572,302.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 363,328 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,437,558.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on UFPI. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on UFP Industries from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of UFP Industries in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Benchmark increased their target price on UFP Industries from $120.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered UFP Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, UFP Industries presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $114.00.

UFP Industries Company Profile

UFP Industries, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets wood and non-wood composites, and other materials in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It operates through Retail, Packaging, and Construction segments. The Retail segment offers treated lumber products, including decking, fencing, lattice, and other products; pressure-treated and fire-retardant products used primarily for outdoor decking environments; and lawn and garden products, consisting of wood and vinyl fencing options, garden beds and planters, pergolas, picnic tables, and other landscaping products.