BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Reliance (NYSE:RS) Stock

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets raised its price target on Reliance to $350 (from $320) but maintained a "market perform" rating; the stock was trading around $358 and the analyst consensus is an average "Hold" with a $343 target, implying only modest downside.
• Reliance beat Q1 estimates with $5.16 EPS versus $4.63 expected and revenue of $4.03 billion (up 15.1% year‑over‑year), and issued Q2 2026 guidance of $5.150–$5.350 EPS.
• Senior executives (the SVP and COO) sold large blocks of shares, reducing their holdings; insiders now own about 0.40% of the stock while institutional investors hold roughly 79.26%.

Reliance (NYSE:RS - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $320.00 to $350.00 in a research report issued on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has a "market perform" rating on the industrial products company's stock. BMO Capital Markets' price target would indicate a potential downside of 2.24% from the company's current price.

RS has been the subject of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Reliance from $323.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Reliance in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Reliance from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Reliance from $340.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Reliance from $340.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $343.00.

Reliance Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RS traded up $6.34 on Monday, hitting $358.02. 80,281 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 354,339. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $314.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $302.78. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.88. Reliance has a 1-year low of $260.31 and a 1-year high of $365.59.

Reliance (NYSE:RS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.63 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.89 billion. Reliance had a return on equity of 11.37% and a net margin of 5.42%.The company's revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.77 earnings per share. Reliance has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 5.150-5.350 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Reliance will post 17.84 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP William A. Smith II sold 6,615 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.61, for a total transaction of $1,975,305.15. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 21,747 shares in the company, valued at $6,493,871.67. This represents a 23.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Stephen Paul Koch sold 24,060 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.62, for a total transaction of $7,738,177.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 14,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,509,434.02. This trade represents a 63.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Reliance

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Reliance in the 3rd quarter worth $1,576,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Reliance in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,297,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Reliance by 4.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 755,756 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $212,243,000 after purchasing an additional 30,765 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Reliance by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 24,284 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,015,000 after acquiring an additional 4,817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First National Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Reliance during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,948,000. 79.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Reliance

Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co NYSE: RS is a leading metals service center company that distributes and processes a broad array of metal products. The company offers cut-to-length, shearing, blanking, sawing, bending, machining and value-added services for carbon and alloy steel, stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium and specialty metal alloys. Its products serve diverse end markets, including energy, infrastructure, general manufacturing, transportation, aerospace and defense.

Founded in 1939 in Los Angeles, Reliance Steel & Aluminum has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.

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