POSCO (NYSE:PKX) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

POSCO (NYSE:PKX) saw a significant drop in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 1,189,111 shares, a drop of 23.1% from the January 15th total of 1,545,571 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 275,565 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 275,565 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of POSCO in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, POSCO currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Trading of POSCO

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PKX. State Street Corp increased its stake in POSCO by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 850,425 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,251,000 after purchasing an additional 41,381 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of POSCO by 14.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 549,699 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,051,000 after buying an additional 68,104 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of POSCO by 57.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 423,253 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,117,000 after buying an additional 154,100 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in POSCO by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 259,374 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $12,577,000 after acquiring an additional 19,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its position in POSCO by 135.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 199,914 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,637,000 after acquiring an additional 115,069 shares during the period.

POSCO Stock Performance

Shares of PKX traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $65.53. 132,347 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 179,612. POSCO has a twelve month low of $40.80 and a twelve month high of $67.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $57.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.22.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.61) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($1.06). The firm had revenue of $10.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.85 billion. POSCO had a net margin of 0.97% and a return on equity of 1.09%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that POSCO will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current year.

POSCO Company Profile

POSCO (NYSE: PKX) is a South Korea–based integrated steel producer founded in 1968 as Pohang Iron and Steel Company. Headquartered in Pohang, the company grew rapidly as part of South Korea’s industrialization program and developed large, integrated steelworks—most notably in Pohang and Gwangyang—that helped establish POSCO among the world’s largest steelmakers. It is structured as a diversified industrial group with steelmaking at its core and a range of downstream and trading businesses.

The company’s primary activities include ironmaking and steelmaking, producing a wide array of steel products such as hot-rolled and cold-rolled sheets, coated steels, plates, stainless and special steels, long products (bars and wire rods), and seamless pipes.