Investors Purchase High Volume of Louisiana-Pacific Put Options (NYSE:LPX)

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 10,002 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 2,143% compared to the typical volume of 446 put options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $99.00 price target on shares of Louisiana-Pacific in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Louisiana-Pacific from $74.00 to $64.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Wolfe Research began coverage on Louisiana-Pacific in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on Louisiana-Pacific from $92.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Louisiana-Pacific from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Louisiana-Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Louisiana-Pacific during the 2nd quarter worth $506,638,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific in the second quarter valued at $445,593,000. Eminence Capital LP lifted its stake in Louisiana-Pacific by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 4,048,136 shares of the building manufacturing company’s stock valued at $326,927,000 after buying an additional 932,177 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. bought a new stake in Louisiana-Pacific in the first quarter valued at $56,596,000. Finally, 59 North Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Louisiana-Pacific by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP now owns 3,536,884 shares of the building manufacturing company’s stock valued at $285,639,000 after acquiring an additional 737,406 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.73% of the company’s stock.

Louisiana-Pacific Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE LPX opened at $66.69 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Louisiana-Pacific has a 12 month low of $62.18 and a 12 month high of $100.34. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $69.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.28.

Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The building manufacturing company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.16). Louisiana-Pacific had a net margin of 2.19% and a return on equity of 4.67%. The company had revenue of $664.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $667.31 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Louisiana-Pacific will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Louisiana-Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Louisiana-Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 151.90%.

Louisiana-Pacific Company Profile

Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE: LPX) is a manufacturer of building products used in residential and light commercial construction. The company’s portfolio includes engineered wood siding and trim, oriented strand board (OSB), and other engineered wood products designed for wall, roof, and structural applications.

Louisiana-Pacific is best known for its LP SmartSide siding and trim products, which are made from engineered wood and marketed as alternatives to traditional wood siding.