Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) Hits New 52-Week High at $95.92

Louisiana-Pacific Co. (NYSE:LPX) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $95.92 and last traded at $95.73, with a volume of 284236 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $90.36.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LPX shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. TD Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Louisiana-Pacific from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Louisiana-Pacific in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson increased their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $98.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Louisiana-Pacific from $83.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Louisiana-Pacific has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.50.

Louisiana-Pacific Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $7.00 billion, a PE ratio of 26.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.78 and a beta of 1.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.43.

Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The building manufacturing company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $724.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $686.84 million. Louisiana-Pacific had a return on equity of 20.87% and a net margin of 9.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.34 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Louisiana-Pacific Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Louisiana-Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 21st. Louisiana-Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Louisiana-Pacific

In other Louisiana-Pacific news, Director Lizanne C. Gottung sold 3,591 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.18, for a total value of $320,245.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,095,819.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Louisiana-Pacific

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. purchased a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 258.5% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 441 shares of the building manufacturing company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 57.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 486 shares of the building manufacturing company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. 94.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Louisiana-Pacific Company Profile

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides building solutions primarily for use in new home construction, repair and remodeling, and outdoor structure markets. It operates through Siding, Oriented Strand Board, LP South America, and Other segments. The Siding segment offers LP SmartSide trim and siding products, LP SmartSide ExpertFinish trim and siding products, LP BuilderSeries lap siding products, and LP Outdoor Building Solutions; and engineered wood siding, trim, soffit, and fascia products.