Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 108,681 Shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) by 26.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 303,856 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 108,681 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Steel Dynamics worth $34,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.67, for a total transaction of $3,184,810.83. Following the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Steel Dynamics Stock Down 5.9 %

STLD opened at $109.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.14, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $128.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $128.97. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.60 and a twelve month 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.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 earnings per share 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 business earned $2.61 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STLD has been the topic of several analyst reports. KeyCorp raised Steel Dynamics from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $149.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $145.00 to $158.00 in a report on Friday, March 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.67.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

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.