Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $46.59, but opened at $50.16. Commercial Metals shares last traded at $50.18, with a volume of 473,943 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CMC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Commercial Metals from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wolfe Research raised Commercial Metals from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Commercial Metals from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group cut their target price on Commercial Metals from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Commercial Metals in a report on Friday, May 30th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $52.00 target price on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Commercial Metals has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $58.00.

Commercial Metals Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.76. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.38.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. Commercial Metals had a net margin of 1.70% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Commercial Metals will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Commercial Metals's dividend payout ratio is 120.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John R. Mcpherson bought 2,475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $40.42 per share, with a total value of $100,039.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $611,999.22. This represents a 19.54% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Commercial Metals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Commercial Metals in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,408,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in Commercial Metals by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 57,994 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,668,000 after buying an additional 6,144 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in Commercial Metals by 94.9% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 9,052 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 4,407 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Commercial Metals by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 339,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $15,624,000 after buying an additional 9,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Commercial Metals by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 53,305 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,453,000 after buying an additional 941 shares in the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.