Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) Upgraded by Wolfe Research to “Peer Perform” Rating

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) was upgraded by analysts at Wolfe Research from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Finviz reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on STLD. StockNews.com cut shares of Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $131.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $146.22.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STLD opened at $133.48 on Thursday. Steel Dynamics has a 52 week low of $104.60 and a 52 week high of $155.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $124.64 and a 200 day moving average of $127.12. 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 $20.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.62, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.35.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 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 posted $2.61 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Steel Dynamics announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Steel Dynamics

In other news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 122,140 shares in the company, valued at $16,448,593.80. This represents a 16.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Steel Dynamics

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 1.2% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 5,981 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $754,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 3,113 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 0.9% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 10,055 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,267,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,929 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 10.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 951 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $120,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 82.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.