Stora Enso Oyj (OTCMKTS:SEOAY – Get Free Report) and West Fraser Timber (OTCMKTS:WFTBF – Get Free Report) are both materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and earnings.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
0.0% of Stora Enso Oyj shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.7% of West Fraser Timber shares are held by institutional investors. 8.1% of Stora Enso Oyj shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Stora Enso Oyj and West Fraser Timber, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Stora Enso Oyj | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| West Fraser Timber | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
Profitability
This table compares Stora Enso Oyj and West Fraser Timber’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Stora Enso Oyj | 6.20% | 2.38% | 1.30% |
| West Fraser Timber | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Dividends
Stora Enso Oyj pays an annual dividend of $0.11 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. West Fraser Timber pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Stora Enso Oyj pays out 13.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. West Fraser Timber pays out 7.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Stora Enso Oyj and West Fraser Timber”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Stora Enso Oyj | $10.55 billion | 0.85 | $786.32 million | $0.84 | 13.52 |
| West Fraser Timber | N/A | N/A | N/A | $3.84 | 17.29 |
Stora Enso Oyj has higher revenue and earnings than West Fraser Timber. Stora Enso Oyj is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than West Fraser Timber, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Stora Enso Oyj beats West Fraser Timber on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Stora Enso Oyj
Stora Enso Oyj provides renewable solutions for the packaging, biomaterials, wooden constructions, and paper industries in Finland and internationally. It operates through Packaging Materials, Packaging Solutions, Biomaterials, Wood Products, Forest, Paper, and Other segments. The company's Packaging Materials segment offers virgin and recycled fiber replace fossil-based materials with low-carbon, renewable and recyclable packaging materials for food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and transport packaging. Its Packaging Solutions segment develops and sells fiber-based packaging products and services, including converting corrugated boards and carton boards; and new materials, such as formed fiber and wood foams into standard and bespoke packaging solutions for retail, e-commerce, and industrials. The company's Biomaterials segment provides various pulp for packaging, paper, tissue, specialties, and hygiene product producers; and tall oil and turpentine from biomass. Its Wood Products segment offers wood-based solutions, including digital tools for design and construction of building projects with wood; applications for windows and doors; and pellets for sustainable heating solutions. The company's Forest segment engages in sustainable forest management, as well as supplies wood. Its Paper segments offers portfolio of products for print and office use. The company's Other segment produces electricity and heat. It serves packaging manufacturers, brand owners, paper merchants, publishers, retailers, printing houses, converters, and construction companies. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Helsinki, Finland.
About West Fraser Timber
West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., a diversified wood products company, produces and sells lumber, panels, and pulp and papers in western Canada and the southern United States. It offers spruce-pine-fir, Douglas Fir-Larch, Hem-Fir tree, and southern yellow pine lumber; treated wood products; and newsprint, wood chips, and other residuals and energy products. The company also provides medium density fiberboard panels and plywood; laminated veneer lumber wood products; and northern bleached softwood Kraft pulp used to produce various paper products, including printing and writing papers, specialty grades, and various tissue products. In addition, it offers bleached chemical thermo-mechanical pulp that is used to produce coated board grades, printing and writing paper, and paper towel/napkin grades, as well as specialty papers and tissue grades. The company exports lumber to the Far East, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. was founded in 1955 and is based in Vancouver, Canada.
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