BMO Capital Markets Lowers Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) to Market Perform

BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $99.00 target price on the building manufacturing company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LPX. TD Securities raised their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Louisiana-Pacific from a neutral rating to a sell rating and cut their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $81.00 in a report on Monday, June 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Louisiana-Pacific from $88.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Loop Capital started 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. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Louisiana-Pacific from $98.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Louisiana-Pacific currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $94.88.

Louisiana-Pacific Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE LPX traded down $0.43 on Thursday, hitting $95.37. 631,630 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 936,760. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 3.32. Louisiana-Pacific has a 52-week low of $49.47 and a 52-week high of $101.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.20, a P/E/G ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 1.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $89.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.43.

Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The building manufacturing company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.23. Louisiana-Pacific had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 20.87%. The firm had revenue of $814.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $797.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Louisiana-Pacific will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Louisiana-Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Louisiana-Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Louisiana-Pacific

In other news, Director Lizanne C. Gottung sold 3,591 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 approximately $2,095,819.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Lizanne C. Gottung sold 3,591 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.18, for a total transaction of $320,245.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 23,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,095,819.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ozey K. Horton, Jr. sold 800 shares of Louisiana-Pacific stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.10, for a total transaction of $76,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,008 shares in the company, valued at $2,787,668.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Louisiana-Pacific

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,254,000. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific during the fourth quarter valued at $2,559,000. Simplicity Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Louisiana-Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at $204,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Louisiana-Pacific in the 4th quarter worth $1,275,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific during the 4th quarter worth about $485,000. 94.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Louisiana-Pacific

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.