Algoma Steel Group Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:ASTL)

Key Points

• Unusually heavy options activity: Traders purchased 2,626 call options on Algoma Steel Group, 1,541% above its average daily call volume of 160.
• Weak financial performance: The company reported a quarterly loss of $0.64 per share, missing estimates, despite revenue of $267.5 million exceeding expectations. Analysts expect a full-year loss of $2.37 per share.
• Investor and analyst sentiment remains cautious: Institutional investors own 72% of the stock, while analysts maintain an average “Reduce” rating, with three Hold ratings and one Sell rating.

Algoma Steel Group Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTL - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Traders acquired 2,626 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,541% compared to the average daily volume of 160 call options.

Algoma Steel Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ASTL traded up $0.47 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $4.54. The stock had a trading volume of 612,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,290,258. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.85, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $479.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.62 and a beta of 1.64. Algoma Steel Group has a twelve month low of $3.02 and a twelve month high of $5.90. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.46.

Algoma Steel Group (NASDAQ:ASTL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported ($0.64) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $267.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $205.57 million. Algoma Steel Group had a negative net margin of 71.60% and a negative return on equity of 110.49%. On average, analysts expect that Algoma Steel Group will post -2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASTL. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Algoma Steel Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $16,780,000. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. increased its stake in Algoma Steel Group by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 14,430,818 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,166,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000,000 shares in the last quarter. MMCAP International Inc. SPC increased its stake in Algoma Steel Group by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. MMCAP International Inc. SPC now owns 11,487,861 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,111,000 after purchasing an additional 3,409,033 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Algoma Steel Group by 1,351.7% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,687,420 shares of the company's stock worth $6,955,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571,184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Algoma Steel Group by 14,366.4% during the third quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 1,529,100 shares of the company's stock worth $5,439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,518,530 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ASTL shares. Wall Street Zen raised Algoma Steel Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of Algoma Steel Group in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Algoma Steel Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Algoma Steel Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Reduce".

About Algoma Steel Group

Algoma Steel Group Inc is a North American steel producer headquartered in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The company operates a modern electric arc furnace (EAF) complex and an integrated rolling mill, enabling it to transform scrap and direct reduced iron into a wide range of steel products. Algoma Steel Group returned to public markets in 2021 with listings on both the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq under the symbol ASTL.

Founded in 1901 as Algoma Steel Corporation, the company grew to become one of Canada’s leading steelmakers before undergoing restructuring in the early 2000s.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source