Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Receives $236.36 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $234.5455.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on STLD. Wall Street Zen upgraded Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Steel Dynamics from $227.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Barclays started coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $192.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Steel Dynamics news, Director Kenneth W. Cornew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.87, for a total transaction of $1,124,350.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 31,299 shares in the company, valued at $7,038,206.13. This trade represents a 13.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 4,825 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.58, for a total transaction of $1,088,423.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 122,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,578,734.06. This represents a 3.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 22,125 shares of company stock valued at $5,438,226 over the last 90 days. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of STLD. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 307.5% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 819 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 82.7% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $435,000 after purchasing an additional 1,578 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,019,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $48,746,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Steel Dynamics by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 105,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,447,000 after buying an additional 7,712 shares during the period. 82.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of STLD opened at $222.06 on Friday. Steel Dynamics has a 12-month low of $119.89 and a 12-month high of $288.74. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $245.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $206.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.14 billion, a PE ratio of 23.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.53.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.79 by ($0.01). Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 7.22%.The company had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. Steel Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics will post 16.73 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.67%.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a U.S.-based, diversified steel producer and metals recycler that operates an integrated network of mini-mills, finishing lines and fabrication facilities. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company manufactures a broad range of steel products and provides downstream processing, coating and fabrication services to industrial customers. Its operations combine steelmaking using electric-arc furnaces with extensive metals recycling capabilities, allowing Steel Dynamics to convert scrap ferrous and nonferrous materials into finished steel products.

The company’s product portfolio includes flat-rolled steel (coiled and sheet products), structural steel and fabricated components, along with coated and painted steel used in consumer, industrial and construction applications.