Reliance (NYSE:RS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Reliance (NYSE:RS) had its price target boosted by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $287.00 to $315.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective points to a potential downside of 1.07% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on RS. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Reliance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Reliance in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Reliance from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $340.00 to $330.00 in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets cut Reliance from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $340.00 to $320.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Reliance in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Reliance presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $323.00.

Reliance Stock Performance

Shares of RS stock traded down $8.86 on Friday, hitting $318.42. 250,547 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 361,794. The company’s fifty day moving average is $317.40 and its 200 day moving average is $294.80. Reliance has a 1-year low of $250.07 and a 1-year high of $365.59. The company has a market capitalization of $16.65 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 4.43 and a quick ratio of 2.08.

Reliance (NYSE:RS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by ($0.40). Reliance had a return on equity of 10.43% and a net margin of 5.17%.The business had revenue of $3.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Reliance has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 4.500-4.70 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Reliance will post 16.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Reliance

In other news, CEO Karla R. Lewis sold 5,809 shares of Reliance stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.50, for a total value of $1,646,851.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 84,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,933,353.50. The trade was a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Stephen Paul Koch sold 3,066 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.56, for a total transaction of $869,394.96. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,975,794.76. This represents a 17.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Reliance by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 15,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,364,000 after buying an additional 940 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Reliance by 4.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,662 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Reliance by 99.2% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 263 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Reliance by 417.6% during the 2nd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 88 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. bought a new position in Reliance in the second quarter valued at about $607,000. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Reliance

Here are the key news stories impacting Reliance this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record volumes, revenue growth and capital returns — Reliance reported Q4 net sales of $3.50B (up 11.9% y/y) and record annual tons sold; the company repurchased $200.1M of stock in Q4 ( $594.1M for full-year 2025) and raised the quarterly dividend to $1.25 (4.2% increase). These are shareholder-friendly actions that support valuation. GlobeNewswire Q4 Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance roughly in line with Street — Reliance set Q1 2026 EPS guidance at $4.50–4.70, which largely overlaps the consensus (~$4.59). Guidance reduces near-term uncertainty but doesn’t materially change expectations. MarketBeat Guidance Note
• Negative Sentiment: EPS missed estimates — Reported non‑GAAP EPS of $2.40 missed the consensus ~$2.80, despite higher revenue, driven by margin pressure and LIFO expense; lower quarterly earnings prompted investor selling. Zacks Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade — JPMorgan cut Reliance from Overweight to Neutral and trimmed its price target from $340 to $330, signaling reduced near-term upside and likely contributing to today’s selling pressure. BenzingaFinviz
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability and EPS trends weakened y/y — Pretax income and diluted EPS declined vs. prior year (non‑GAAP EPS and pretax margins compressed), reflecting mix, LIFO effects and lower gross profit margins; these metrics raise questions about margin recovery. GlobeNewswire Q4 Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / transcripts available — Management commentary (earnings call transcripts) provides color on demand trends, LIFO outlook and capital allocation that investors should review for conviction. Seeking Alpha Transcript Yahoo Finance Transcript

About Reliance

Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co (NYSE: RS) is a leading metals service center company that distributes and processes a broad array of metal products. The company offers cut-to-length, shearing, blanking, sawing, bending, machining and value-added services for carbon and alloy steel, stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium and specialty metal alloys. Its products serve diverse end markets, including energy, infrastructure, general manufacturing, transportation, aerospace and defense.

Founded in 1939 in Los Angeles, Reliance Steel & Aluminum has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.