Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (NYSE:WPM - Get Free Report)'s stock price 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 traded. The stock had previously closed at $76.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WPM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price objective on 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. Stifel Canada raised Wheaton Precious Metals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $72.44.

Wheaton Precious Metals Trading Down 2.1 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $34.40 billion, a PE ratio of 56.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $68.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.92.

Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $395.74 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.36 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Wheaton Precious Metals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This is a positive change from Wheaton Precious Metals's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Wheaton Precious Metals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.90%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wheaton Precious Metals

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WPM. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Wheaton Precious Metals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,790,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Wheaton Precious Metals by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 163,514 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,196,000 after purchasing an additional 26,924 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 133,627 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,170,000 after purchasing an additional 39,979 shares in the last quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Wheaton Precious Metals by 44.9% in the 3rd quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 45,200 shares of the company's stock worth $2,761,000 after buying an additional 14,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Wheaton Precious Metals by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 399,035 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,442,000 after buying an additional 33,256 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.34% of the company's stock.

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.