Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Price Target Raised to $80.00

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets raised Commercial Metals’ price target from $77 to $80 while maintaining a “market perform” rating, implying approximately 5.57% upside. Analysts collectively assign the stock a “Moderate Buy” rating with a consensus target of $79.73.
• Commercial Metals exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.73 in EPS versus the $1.70 consensus and $2.48 billion in revenue, up 22.9% year over year.
• The company authorized a $600 million share-repurchase program, allowing buybacks of up to 7.5% of outstanding shares. CEO Peter R. Matt also purchased 8,230 shares, increasing his position by 4.75%.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $77.00 to $80.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "market perform" rating on the basic materials company's stock. BMO Capital Markets' price objective indicates a potential upside of 5.57% from the company's current price.

CMC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Commercial Metals from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $84.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Commercial Metals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Commercial Metals in a report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.73.

Commercial Metals Stock Performance

NYSE:CMC opened at $75.78 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.54. Commercial Metals has a 1 year low of $51.52 and a 1 year high of $84.87.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.03. Commercial Metals had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 6.72%.The company had revenue of $2.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Commercial Metals will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Commercial Metals declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 5th that permits the company to repurchase $600.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to repurchase up to 7.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Commercial Metals

In other news, CEO Peter R. Matt acquired 8,230 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $61.30 per share, with a total value of $504,499.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 181,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,127,298.60. This represents a 4.75% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Commercial Metals

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 23,199 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,606,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Commercial Metals by 4.2% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,610 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,904 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,554 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,630,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Commercial Metals by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,164 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company's stock.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

Commercial Metals Company NYSE: CMC is a leading global steel and metal recycler, manufacturer and fabricator based in Irving, Texas. The company operates an integrated network of scrap recycling facilities, electric arc furnace steel mills, metal fabrication plants and distribution centers. Through these operations, Commercial Metals collects and processes ferrous scrap to produce finished steel products and provides recycled metal to a variety of end markets.

In its steelmaking segment, CMC uses electric arc furnace technology to transform recycled scrap into reinforcing bar (rebar), merchant bar, coil and structural products.

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