Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) Hits New 52-Week High at $54.45

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM) shares reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $54.45 and last traded at $53.95, with a volume of 167296 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.73.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on WPM shares. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Wheaton Precious Metals from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. TD Securities upgraded Wheaton Precious Metals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $51.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Wheaton Precious Metals from $60.00 to $59.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, National Bank Financial lowered shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wheaton Precious Metals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.32.

Wheaton Precious Metals Stock Up 0.4 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $46.35 and a 200-day moving average of $46.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.38, a PEG ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 0.77.

Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.04. Wheaton Precious Metals had a net margin of 52.92% and a return on equity of 7.76%. The business had revenue of $313.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $284.29 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. will post 1.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wheaton Precious Metals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 3rd were issued a $0.155 dividend. This is a boost from Wheaton Precious Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. Wheaton Precious Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wheaton Precious Metals

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Mechanics Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 200.0% during the third quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 900 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 230.7% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 863 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the period. 70.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Wheaton Precious Metals

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.