Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS) Short Interest Update

Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,173,916 shares, an increase of 24.8% from the January 29th total of 940,650 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 300,451 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days. Currently, 2.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Currently, 2.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 300,451 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on WS. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Worthington Steel from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Worthington Steel from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Worthington Steel from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Worthington Steel currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.00.

Worthington Steel Price Performance

WS stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $39.06. The stock had a trading volume of 204,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 251,635. Worthington Steel has a 52-week low of $21.30 and a 52-week high of $49.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $40.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.48. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94 and a beta of 1.62.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) last released its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $871.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $797.25 million. Worthington Steel had a return on equity of 10.70% and a net margin of 3.83%.Worthington Steel’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Worthington Steel will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Worthington Steel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jon J. Bowsher purchased 2,500 shares of Worthington Steel stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $40.15 per share, for a total transaction of $100,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 17,893 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,403.95. The trade was a 16.24% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott J. Kelly bought 7,000 shares of Worthington Steel stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.11 per share, for a total transaction of $273,770.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 16,157 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $631,900.27. The trade was a 76.44% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Worthington Steel

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Worthington Steel by 56.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Worthington Steel in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. MAI Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Worthington Steel during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.41% of the company’s stock.

About Worthington Steel

Worthington Steel (NYSE: WS) is a leading North American steel processor specializing in the production of flat-rolled, coated and painted sheet and coil products. Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Worthington Industries, the company serves a broad range of industries, including construction, automotive, appliance, energy and agricultural equipment. Its core business activities encompass the processing, finishing and distribution of carbon and advanced high-strength steels, aluminum and stainless products to manufacturers across the continent.

The company’s product portfolio includes hot-dip galvanizing, galvannealed, aluminized and pre-painted steel products, as well as cold-rolled and hot-rolled coil.