Van ECK Associates Corp Grows Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 118,936 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,585 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $16,583,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 1,636.4% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 191 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its stake in Steel Dynamics by 50.0% during the third quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 44.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. CNB Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the third quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

Steel Dynamics Stock Down 1.4%

STLD traded down $2.48 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $172.62. 209,898 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,298,746. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $103.17 and a fifty-two week high of $208.47. The company has a market cap of $25.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.56.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.62 billion. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 13.56%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Steel Dynamics’s payout ratio is presently 24.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Steel Dynamics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $194.00 target price (up from $173.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Steel Dynamics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Steel Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $184.22.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

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.