Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $60.33.

Several equities analysts recently commented on CMC shares. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th.

Insider Activity at Commercial Metals

In other Commercial Metals news, Director John R. Mcpherson purchased 2,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $40.42 per share, with a total value of $100,039.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $611,999.22. The trade was a 19.54% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Commercial Metals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in Commercial Metals by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 12,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 777 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 90,989 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 0.5% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 333,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $15,356,000 after acquiring an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Comerica Bank grew its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.2% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 57,111 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,628,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares during the period. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals in the first quarter worth approximately $1,371,000. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Commercial Metals Price Performance

CMC stock opened at $48.16 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.76. Commercial Metals has a 52 week low of $37.92 and a 52 week high of $64.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $44.79 and its 200 day moving average is $50.41. The firm has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.29.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.05). Commercial Metals had a net margin of 1.70% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. Commercial Metals’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Commercial Metals will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 120.00%.

About Commercial Metals

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.