Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $71.67.

Several research firms have commented on WPM. National Bank Financial raised shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Stifel Canada lowered Wheaton Precious Metals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group initiated coverage on Wheaton Precious Metals in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Wheaton Precious Metals from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Wheaton Precious Metals from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th.

Wheaton Precious Metals Stock Down 0.6 %

WPM stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $57.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 626,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,752,219. Wheaton Precious Metals has a 12 month low of $38.57 and a 12 month high of $68.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $62.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.75.

Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34. The firm had revenue of $308.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $324.57 million. Wheaton Precious Metals had a net margin of 50.05% and a return on equity of 8.85%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Wheaton Precious Metals will post 1.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wheaton Precious Metals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. Wheaton Precious Metals's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.27%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wheaton Precious Metals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 1.0% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 19,984,984 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,047,621,000 after buying an additional 197,426 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 33.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,665,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $895,723,000 after acquiring an additional 3,692,594 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Wheaton Precious Metals by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 5,950,317 shares of the company's stock valued at $311,920,000 after acquiring an additional 1,092,480 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Wheaton Precious Metals by 3.1% in the second quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,574,648 shares of the company's stock worth $187,490,000 after purchasing an additional 108,976 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 22.5% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,456,230 shares of the company's stock worth $211,207,000 after purchasing an additional 634,843 shares during the last quarter. 70.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.