ABC Arbitrage SA Buys New Stake in Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Key Points

• ABC Arbitrage SA disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Steel Dynamics, buying 14,681 shares valued at about $2.49 million.
• Steel Dynamics reported quarterly EPS of $2.78, slightly below estimates, on revenue of $5.20 billion, while revenue still rose 19.1% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, and several analysts have turned more bullish, with recent price-target increases and a consensus rating of Hold.

ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 14,681 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $2,488,000.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 307.5% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 819 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 82.7% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 3,485 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,019,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the second quarter worth approximately $48,746,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Steel Dynamics by 7.9% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 105,051 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $13,447,000 after acquiring an additional 7,712 shares during the last quarter. 82.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STLD opened at $235.97 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $34.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.48. The firm's 50 day moving average is $194.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.39. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $119.89 and a fifty-two week high of $243.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.79 by ($0.01). Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 7.22%.The firm had revenue of $5.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 14.77 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Steel Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 22.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Steel Dynamics news, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 4,825 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.58, for a total transaction of $1,088,423.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 122,257 shares in the company, valued at $27,578,734.06. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth W. Cornew sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.87, for a total transaction of $1,124,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 31,299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,038,206.13. This represents a 13.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on STLD. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Steel Dynamics from $207.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Steel Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Steel Dynamics from $180.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Steel Dynamics from $195.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Steel Dynamics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $214.30.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a U.S.-based, diversified steel producer and metals recycler that operates an integrated network of mini-mills, finishing lines and fabrication facilities. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company manufactures a broad range of steel products and provides downstream processing, coating and fabrication services to industrial customers. Its operations combine steelmaking using electric-arc furnaces with extensive metals recycling capabilities, allowing Steel Dynamics to convert scrap ferrous and nonferrous materials into finished steel products.

The company's product portfolio includes flat-rolled steel (coiled and sheet products), structural steel and fabricated components, along with coated and painted steel used in consumer, industrial and construction applications.

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