Is lumber a good investment?

Lumber can be a good investment in the right circumstances. Demand is closely correlated with the housing market, so lumber stocks tend to do better when demand for new housing is strong.

What is the largest lumber company in the U.S.?

Weyerhaeuser is the largest lumber company in the U.S. with millions of acres of timberland and a production capacity of 4.3 billion board feet annually.

What are lumber stocks with the highest dividends?

Dividend yields change frequently, but as of April 2026, some of the highest-yielding lumber stocks were Rayonier (NYSE: RYN) at 5.1% and Weyerhaeuser at 3.4%.

What are the most undervalued lumber stocks?

One of the cheaper lumber stocks on the market is UFP Inudstries, which currently trades at a P/E of 18, although earnings are expected to fall.

Are lumber prices falling?

As of April 2026, lumber prices have been flat over the last year, though they remain volatile, as with most commodities.

Is there an ETF for lumber?

Yes, there are multiple ETFs, including iShares Global Timber & Forestry ETF and Invesco MSCI Global Timber ETF. Both funds own a mix of stocks with exposure to lumber, including REITs, wood production companies, and pulp and paper product companies.

5 Best Lumber Stocks in 2026 and How to Invest in Them

By Jeremy Bowman – Updated Jul 13, 2026 at 11:17 AM EST | Fact-checked by Frank Bass

Key Points

Lumber prices stable between $500-$700 per 1,000 board feet as of mid-2026, impacting stock stability.
International Paper focuses on profitable packaging, benefiting from e-commerce with a 5% dividend yield.
Boise Cascade's performance tied to housing market, with recent revenue drop influencing stock outlook.

After wild swings in prices throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, lumber stocks have been steadier in recent years as prices have been stable. Futures are hovering between $500 and $700 per thousand board feet as of mid-2026. Lumber is a key input in homebuilding and home improvement. With the housing market sluggish, lumber prices are still down significantly from their peak during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Adult and child looking at wood and lumber. — Image source: Getty Images.

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Top lumber stocks in 2026

Let's delve into a few of the best lumber stocks to buy this year. That includes wood products companies like Boise Cascade, UFP Industries, and West Fraser Timber, cardboard and packaging companies like International Paper, and Weyerhaeuser, the largest timberland REIT in the world.

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Ticker Information Table
Name and ticker	Market capMarket cap calculated using publicly traded shares outstanding only. Does not include unlisted, private, or dual-class non-traded shares. Implied market cap may vary.	Current price	Industry
International Paper (NYSE:IP)	$19.5 billion	$36.74	Containers and Packaging
Boise Cascade (NYSE:BCC)	$2.7 billion	$75.99	Trading Companies and Distributors
West Fraser Timber (NYSE:WFG)	$5.6 billion	$71.32	Paper and Forest Products
UFP Industries (NASDAQ:UFPI)	$4.8 billion	$84.98	Building Products
Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY)	$17.2 billion	$23.91	Specialized REITs

Data as of Jul 16, 2026. Showing 5 of 5 total entries.

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1. International Paper

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NYSE: IP

International Paper

Today's Change

(0.66%) $0.24

Current Price

$36.74

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$19B

Day's Range

$36.63 - $37.55

52wk Range

$29.26 - $56.13

Volume

5.8M

Avg Vol

6.6M

Gross Margin

19.23%

Dividend Yield

5.04%

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Demand for paper may have crumpled in the digital era, but that hasn't stopped International Paper (IP +0.66%) from delivering solid returns for investors, especially with its dividend factored in. International Paper is one of the world's biggest paper manufacturers, but it produces mostly industrial packaging, such as the cardboard that allows it to benefit from the boom in e-commerce.

Industrial packaging accounts for more than 80% of International Paper's revenue and is the company's largest business segment. After the 2021 spinoff of its printing paper business, Sylvamo (SLVM -0.69%), the company has moved toward a pure-play in that category. It also sold off its global cellulose fibers business, which supplies fluff and pulp in August 2025 for $1.5 billion.

In January 2025, it acquired DS Smith, a European leader in packaging, in a deal estimated at $7.2 billion. The company's revenue jumped more than 50% in 2025 thanks to the DS Smith acquisition, and it announced the closure of packaging facilities in California and Kentucky in November 2025, part of its strategy of streamlining costs.

The company is now focused on driving results through the 80/20 rule to accelerate profitable growth, which means focusing on its most profitable customers and products and investing in them accordingly.

International Paper expects the DS Smith purchase to enhance its innovation and geographic reach and improve its scale. International Paper has long paid a dividend to investors (currently a 5% dividend yield) and trades at a reasonable forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, making this stock a solid choice for both value and income investors.

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2. Boise Cascade

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NYSE: BCC

Boise Cascade

Today's Change

(2.56%) $1.90

Current Price

$75.99

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$2.7B

Day's Range

$74.14 - $78.20

52wk Range

$65.00 - $91.97

Volume

534.3K

Avg Vol

436.4K

Gross Margin

13.77%

Dividend Yield

1.16%

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Boise Cascade (BCC +2.56%) has been one of the best-performing lumber stocks in recent years, as the stock more than tripled from the start of 2020 to the end of 2024, though it's since cooled off. Profits soared through 2024 as the company benefited from higher lumber prices, which are still well above pre-pandemic levels.

The manufacturer of wood products has struggled more recently with the soft housing market since the company says demand for its products is correlated with new residential construction. In 2025, revenue was down 5% to $6.4 billion.

Like International Paper, Boise Cascade continues to grow through acquisitions, acquiring the Parksite door shop with 22 locations in Florida in December 2024, and building materials distributor Holden Humphrey in December 2025. The company also pays a modest but consistent dividend, currently yielding 1.1%. Since most of the company's business comes from building materials, its prospects are closely tied to the housing market, so it's a good choice if you're bullish on housing.

3. West Fraser Timber Company

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NYSE: WFG

West Fraser Timber

Today's Change

(0.18%) $0.13

Current Price

$71.32

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$5.6B

Day's Range

$71.09 - $72.42

52wk Range

$57.34 - $76.99

Volume

290.3K

Avg Vol

187.2K

Gross Margin

-322.22%

Dividend Yield

1.79%

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The West Fraser Timber Company (WFG +0.18%) produces much of its wood from publicly owned forests in Canada, where it has licenses to harvest. Although close to 40% of the company's 2025 revenue came from lumber, West Fraser also makes pulp, paper, and engineered wood products, like plywood panels.

Like Boise Cascade, West Fraser has made several acquisitions and its business is closely correlated with new construction. In 2025, its revenue declined by 15% in 2025 as the company struggled with both weak demand and U.S. tariffs.

However, long-term trends in the North American housing market should benefit West Fraser's lumber business as new construction should eventually pick up. Profits for West Fraser can be volatile, as is the case for many commodity producers. The company also currently offers a 2% dividend yield.

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4. UFP Industries

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NASDAQ: UFPI

UFP Industries

Today's Change

(0.76%) $0.64

Current Price

$84.98

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$4.8B

Day's Range

$83.90 - $86.50

52wk Range

$77.89 - $118.00

Volume

285.1K

Avg Vol

502.8K

Gross Margin

16.62%

Dividend Yield

1.67%

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UFP Industries (UFPI +0.76%) is a large, diversified lumber and wood-based materials company. It operates in three segments: construction, packaging, and retail solutions, including decking, siding, and fencing. Like its peers, UFP has struggled with a slow housing market as sales in all three of its segments fell in 2025.

The company expects those challenges to persist, though it's focused on controlling costs and driving efficiencies. It's also on the lookout for acquisitions and recently acquired C&L Wood Products, an Alabama-based small manufacturer of pallets and mulch, and Oldcastle APG's MoistureShield decking assets, which will expand its composite decking capacity. The company has made moves to expand in 2025, acquiring a facility in Twin Falls, Idaho, and a 30-acre site in Lackawanna, N.Y., for a composite decking facility.

Lower commodity prices tend to lower valuations in the industry, creating opportunities for industry leaders like UFP Industries to acquire new companies.

5. Weyerhaeuser

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NYSE: WY

Weyerhaeuser

Today's Change

(0.46%) $0.11

Current Price

$23.91

Key Data Points

Market Cap

$17B

Day's Range

$23.77 - $24.16

52wk Range

$21.16 - $27.75

Volume

4.2M

Avg Vol

5.5M

Gross Margin

14.67%

Dividend Yield

3.51%

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Weyerhaeuser (WY +0.46%) has a different business model from the other companies on the list. It operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT), specializing in timberlands.

It now has 12.4 million acres in the U.S., and manages another 14 million in Canada. Weyerhaeuser is significantly bigger than any other timberland REIT, and the company makes money by selling timber grown on its property. It also owns significant milling and production operations.

Because of its direct exposure to lumber prices, Weyerhaeuser benefits when lumber prices go up. However, the company has also struggled with a weak housing market, and it has accelerated its share repurchases to take advantage of the lull in the industry.

Both revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) were down in 2025 as the company noted a very challenging market backdrop, but it said it was well-positioned to benefit from longer-term demand fundamentals.

How to invest in lumber stocks

If you want to buy a lumber stock, here's how to do it. Just follow these steps:

Open your brokerage app: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments. If you don't have one yet, take a look at our favorite brokers and trading platforms to find the right one for you.
Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.

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Benefits and risks of investing in lumber stocks

Lumber is a commodity, so the benefits and risks of investing in lumber stocks are similar to those of other commodities. They include the following.

Benefits:

The performance of lumber stock is correlated with the price of lumber. If lumber prices spike as they did during the pandemic, lumber stocks could soar.
Lumber stocks generally pay dividends.
Most lumber stocks have some correlation with the housing market, so a recovery in the housing market would benefit the lumber sector.
Lumber is an essential material for home construction and other purposes, so demand for these companies' products will continue over the long term.

Risks:

Commodity stocks have relatively little control over their performance since the business is closely tied to lumber prices.
The lingering weakness in the housing market has caused lumber stocks to spiral through 2025 and 2026.
The paper industry has been in a long decline, weighing on lumber stocks with exposure to paper.
Tariffs have mostly had a negative impact on the industry, which has led to price volatility, pressure on homebuilders, and caused some sawmills to close.

Methodology: How these stocks were chosen

The stocks above offer a good sampling of the lumber stocks available to investors. While lumber is a basic material and a major commodity, there are not many U.S.-listed publicly traded companies in lumber and the related paper and pulp industry.

These stocks give investors an opportunity to get exposure to paper companies, a range of wood product companies, and even a REIT.

Lumber stocks are likely to rise and fall with lumber prices, especially for vertically integrated producers and others that own timberland.

The bottom line

The lumber industry is primarily commodity-driven, so creating a competitive advantage can be difficult. That also means lumber companies are at the mercy of market prices, which can be a tailwind during booms like the pandemic, but have been a challenge more recently.

Still, these companies provide essential materials for homebuilding, furniture, home products, and other industries, and the shortage in the U.S. housing market should eventually drive demand growth. In other words, patience in the sector should pay off.

FAQ

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Lumber stocks FAQ

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About the Author

Jeremy Bowman has been a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst, covering technology, consumer goods, and macroeconomic trends since 2011. Before The Motley Fool, Jeremy was a newspaper reporter, restaurant manager, and English teacher abroad. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Colorado College and a master’s degree in business administration from American University. One of his Motley Fool headlines was briefly featured on Late Night with Stephen Colbert.

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Jeremy Bowman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends West Fraser Timber. The Motley Fool recommends Boise Cascade, International Paper, and UFP Industries. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

5 Best Lumber Stocks in 2026 and How to Invest in Them

Key Points