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

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

STLD has been the subject of a number of other reports. KeyCorp raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $149.00 price objective (up from $145.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics from $134.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $146.22.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

STLD opened at $133.48 on Thursday. 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. The company has a fifty day moving average of $124.64 and a 200 day moving average of $127.12. Steel Dynamics has a fifty-two week low of $104.60 and a fifty-two week high of $155.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.53.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 8.76%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.61 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Activity at Steel Dynamics

In related news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.67, for a total transaction of $3,184,810.83. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 122,140 shares in the company, valued at $16,448,593.80. This trade represents a 16.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Steel Dynamics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 532.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 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.