1,629,983 Shares in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. $WFG Bought by Donald Smith & CO. Inc.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,629,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,334,000. West Fraser Timber comprises approximately 2.0% of Donald Smith & CO. Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 2.08% of West Fraser Timber as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 72.2% in the 1st 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. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of West Fraser Timber by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 7,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $478,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in West Fraser Timber by 177.0% during the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in West Fraser Timber by 0.8% in the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 47,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,115,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of West Fraser Timber by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 7,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. 40.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WFG. Wall Street Zen upgraded West Fraser Timber from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of West Fraser Timber in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on West Fraser Timber from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen lowered 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 report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Fraser Mackenzie lowered their price objective on shares of 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.20.

West Fraser Timber Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFG opened at $69.69 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $68.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.78. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. has a 12-month low of $57.34 and a 12-month high of $76.99. The firm has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a PE ratio of -4.51 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG) last released its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.45 billion. West Fraser Timber had a negative net margin of 22.98% and a negative return on equity of 10.84%. Equities research analysts predict that West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. will post -3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

West Fraser Timber Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 25th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 25th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. West Fraser Timber’s payout ratio is currently -8.29%.

West Fraser Timber 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.