JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) Stock Price

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) had its target price hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $132.00 to $140.00 in a research note released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Steel Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $145.00 to $158.00 in a report on Friday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $125.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $149.00 price target (up from $145.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.56.

Steel Dynamics Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ STLD opened at $120.76 on Tuesday. Steel Dynamics has a 52-week low of $104.60 and a 52-week high of $155.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $126.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.80.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.33). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 17.32%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.61 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.41%.

Steel Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, February 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Steel Dynamics

In other news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.67, for a total value of $3,184,810.83. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 122,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,448,593.80. This trade represents a 16.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Steel Dynamics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 532.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.