Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) Stock Price Down 6.3% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX) dropped 6.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $79.96 and last traded at $79.7110. Approximately 748,717 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 4% from the average daily volume of 720,505 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LPX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Securities lowered their price objective on Louisiana-Pacific from $97.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Louisiana-Pacific from $114.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Louisiana-Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Louisiana-Pacific in a research report on Monday, December 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $100.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Louisiana-Pacific in a report on Monday, December 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.43.

Louisiana-Pacific Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a current ratio of 2.93.

Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The building manufacturing company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $663.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $670.26 million. Louisiana-Pacific had a net margin of 7.69% and a return on equity of 14.90%. Louisiana-Pacific’s quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Louisiana-Pacific Corporation will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Louisiana-Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Louisiana-Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.25%.

Insider Transactions at Louisiana-Pacific

In other news, Director Stephen E. Macadam bought 3,200 shares of Louisiana-Pacific stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $78.06 per share, for a total transaction of $249,792.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 41,149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,212,090.94. This represents a 8.43% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO William Bradley Southern sold 42,514 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.25, for a total value of $3,666,832.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 559,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,292,065. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Louisiana-Pacific

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LPX. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific during the 3rd quarter valued at $14,285,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 170.4% during the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 58,541 shares of the building manufacturing company’s stock valued at $5,201,000 after buying an additional 36,891 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific during the third quarter worth about $263,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific in the 3rd quarter worth about $80,000. Finally, Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Louisiana-Pacific in the 3rd quarter worth about $401,000. 94.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Louisiana-Pacific Company Profile

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE: LPX) is a leading manufacturer of building materials and engineered wood products for residential, industrial and light commercial construction. The company produces a diverse portfolio of products, including oriented strand board (OSB), engineered wood siding, trim, molding, sheathing panels and subflooring. Its flagship product lines, such as LP® SmartSide® trim and siding, are designed to offer enhanced durability, moisture resistance and ease of installation, helping builders and homeowners achieve long-lasting performance in a variety of climates.

Founded in 1973 as a spin-off from Georgia-Pacific, Louisiana-Pacific established its reputation by pioneering innovative manufacturing techniques for OSB, becoming one of the first companies to bring the product to market in the 1980s.