Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $77.73 and last traded at $77.7850, with a volume of 283214 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on CMC shares. Zacks Research upgraded Commercial Metals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Commercial Metals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.70.

Commercial Metals Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $8.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.61. The company has a quick ratio of 3.70, a current ratio of 4.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 8th. The basic materials company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.29. Commercial Metals had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 11.43%. The business had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Commercial Metals Company will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 19th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Commercial Metals’s payout ratio is 18.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Commercial Metals

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CMC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals during the 2nd quarter worth $70,402,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Commercial Metals during the third quarter worth about $54,394,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,225,000. Merewether Investment Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,847,000. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,521,130 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $87,130,000 after purchasing an additional 448,083 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

Commercial Metals Company (NYSE: CMC) is a leading global steel and metal recycler, manufacturer and fabricator based in Irving, Texas. The company operates an integrated network of scrap recycling facilities, electric arc furnace steel mills, metal fabrication plants and distribution centers. Through these operations, Commercial Metals collects and processes ferrous scrap to produce finished steel products and provides recycled metal to a variety of end markets.

In its steelmaking segment, CMC uses electric arc furnace technology to transform recycled scrap into reinforcing bar (rebar), merchant bar, coil and structural products.