Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) Reaches New 12-Month High at $54.45

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM) shares hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $54.45 and last traded at $54.43, with a volume of 304439 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WPM. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on Wheaton Precious Metals from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Wheaton Precious Metals from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Raymond James cut their price objective on Wheaton Precious Metals from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank decreased 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 report on Wednesday, February 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.32.

Wheaton Precious Metals Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a market cap of $24.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.24, a P/E/G ratio of 7.13 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s 50 day moving average is $48.42 and its 200 day moving average is $47.02.

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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $284.29 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. will post 1.26 EPS for the current year.

Wheaton Precious Metals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 3rd were issued a $0.155 dividend. This is a positive change from Wheaton Precious Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 2nd. Wheaton Precious Metals’s payout ratio is currently 52.10%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wheaton Precious Metals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Wheaton Precious Metals by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 87,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,563,000 after acquiring an additional 5,181 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Wheaton Precious Metals by 3.7% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 496,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,135,000 after buying an additional 17,745 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 106.4% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 15,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 7,992 shares during the period. Advisor Partners II LLC increased its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 14,140 shares of the company’s stock worth $573,000 after buying an additional 1,876 shares during the period. Finally, SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Wheaton Precious Metals by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,334,000 after buying an additional 1,625 shares during the last quarter. 70.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.