ArcelorMittal S.A. (NYSE:MT) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of ArcelorMittal S.A. (NYSE:MT - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $32.95.

Several brokerages have recently commented on MT. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of ArcelorMittal from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $31.70 in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of ArcelorMittal from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of ArcelorMittal from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $36.20 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ArcelorMittal in a research report on Monday, April 14th.

ArcelorMittal Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of MT stock traded up $0.38 during trading on Monday, hitting $30.50. 764,902 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,880,076. ArcelorMittal has a 52-week low of $20.52 and a 52-week high of $34.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.14 and a beta of 1.62. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $28.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

ArcelorMittal (NYSE:MT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $14.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.11 billion. ArcelorMittal had a return on equity of 4.31% and a net margin of 2.14%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.16 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that ArcelorMittal will post 3.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ArcelorMittal Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.2338 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a yield of 1.44%. ArcelorMittal's payout ratio is currently 30.07%.

Institutional Trading of ArcelorMittal

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of ArcelorMittal by 25.4% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in ArcelorMittal by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,438 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ArcelorMittal by 3.0% in the first quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 14,097 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its position in ArcelorMittal by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 15,496 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its holdings in shares of ArcelorMittal by 23.7% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 2,298 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. 9.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ArcelorMittal

ArcelorMittal SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated steel and mining companies in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It offers semi-finished flat products, including slabs; finished flat products comprising plates, hot- and cold-rolled coils and sheets, hot-dipped and electro-galvanized coils and sheets, tinplate, and color coated coils and sheets; semi-finished long products, such as blooms and billets; finished long products consisting of bars, wire-rods, structural sections, rails, sheet piles, and wire-products; and seamless and welded pipes and tubes.