Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Analysts

Shares of Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $78.73.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CMC shares. Bank of America lowered their target price on Commercial Metals from $84.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Commercial Metals from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Barclays dropped their price target on Commercial Metals from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Commercial Metals from $88.00 to $84.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 19th.

Commercial Metals Stock Down 1.6%

CMC opened at $62.79 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.70, a PEG ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 1.53. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.38. Commercial Metals has a 52 week low of $55.97 and a 52 week high of $84.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The basic materials company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.14. Commercial Metals had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 25.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Commercial Metals will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 28th. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.63%.

Commercial Metals announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to buy back $600.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 7.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John McPherson purchased 1,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $71.92 per share, with a total value of $99,968.80. Following the purchase, the director owned 21,927 shares in the company, valued at $1,576,989.84. This trade represents a 6.77% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Commercial Metals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMC. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. purchased a new stake in Commercial Metals during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. USA Financial Formulas increased its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 496 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in Commercial Metals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals during the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Commercial Metals by 617.2% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 832 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 716 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Commercial Metals

Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC) is a steel and metals manufacturer, recycler and fabricator headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company produces and sells steel products used in construction, infrastructure and industrial applications, including reinforcing bar, wire rod, merchant bar, structural steel and related products.

CMC operates an integrated recycling and manufacturing model. Its recycling facilities collect and process ferrous and nonferrous scrap metal, which is used as raw material in the company’s electric-arc-furnace steel mills.