Bank of America Corp DE Has $29.08 Million Stock Holdings in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB)

Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Free Report) by 130.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,095,722 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,718,323 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.49% of Gerdau worth $29,076,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 30.2% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 553,287 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,593,000 after acquiring an additional 128,176 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 221.1% in the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,236,271 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,560,000 after acquiring an additional 851,203 shares in the last quarter. Appian Way Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the fourth quarter worth about $393,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the fourth quarter worth about $263,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 918,238 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,645,000 after acquiring an additional 236,951 shares in the last quarter. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gerdau Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of GGB stock traded down $0.01 on Friday, hitting $2.71. 13,665,512 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,395,058. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.30 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a 50-day moving average of $2.68 and a 200 day moving average of $2.94. Gerdau S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $2.27 and a fifty-two week high of $3.66.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.66 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 7.74% and a net margin of 7.03%. Equities analysts anticipate that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 EPS for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.0188 per share. This is a boost from Gerdau's previous dividend of $0.00. This represents a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Gerdau's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GGB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on Gerdau from $3.30 to $2.90 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Monday, April 7th.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.