United States Steel (NYSE:X) Price Target Raised to $38.00

United States Steel (NYSE:X) had its price target hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $35.00 to $38.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down previously from $43.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.22.

United States Steel Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of NYSE:X opened at $40.60 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $41.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.38. United States Steel has a one year low of $26.92 and a one year high of $46.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.19 billion, a PE ratio of 27.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.82.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. United States Steel had a return on equity of 4.27% and a net margin of 2.46%. The business’s revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United States Steel will post 1.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. United States Steel’s dividend payout ratio is 68.97%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United States Steel

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in United States Steel by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,558,732 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $698,791,000 after acquiring an additional 186,994 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of United States Steel by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,291,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $315,790,000 after purchasing an additional 929,762 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in United States Steel by 14.0% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,440,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $229,897,000 after purchasing an additional 666,844 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its position in United States Steel by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 4,788,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $162,747,000 after purchasing an additional 68,230 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in United States Steel by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,862,064 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $131,313,000 after buying an additional 22,380 shares in the last quarter. 81.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United States Steel

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.