Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) Sets New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $77.53 and last traded at $77.39, with a volume of 84453 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $76.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on WPM. Stifel Canada raised Wheaton Precious Metals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.44.

Wheaton Precious Metals Stock Up 0.3 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.77.

Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.01). Wheaton Precious Metals had a net margin of 50.05% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The business had revenue of $380.52 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $395.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Wheaton Precious Metals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a boost from Wheaton Precious Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Wheaton Precious Metals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wheaton Precious Metals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Wheaton Precious Metals during the 4th quarter worth about $472,648,000. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $263,810,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 33.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,665,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $895,723,000 after acquiring an additional 3,692,594 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Wheaton Precious Metals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $72,657,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Wheaton Precious Metals by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 20,534,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,154,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,231,999 shares during the period. 70.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wheaton Precious Metals Company Profile

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. primarily sells precious metals in North America, Europe, and South America. It produces and sells gold, silver, palladium, and cobalt deposits. The company was formerly known as Silver Wheaton Corp. and changed its name to Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. in May 2017. Wheaton Precious Metals Corp.