Pacer Advisors Inc. Purchases 742,503 Shares of Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly increased its stake in Commercial Metals Company by 4,372.6% during the first quarter, owning approximately 759,484 shares valued at $34.9 million.
• Commercial Metals reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.74 for the last quarter, missing estimates by $0.11, while its revenue was $2.02 billion, slightly below the expected $2.04 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.35%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 232.26%.

Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC - Free Report) by 4,372.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 759,484 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 742,503 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.67% of Commercial Metals worth $34,944,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 27.5% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,089,313 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $142,139,000 after acquiring an additional 666,886 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Commercial Metals by 87.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,919,445 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $95,204,000 after buying an additional 893,094 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Commercial Metals by 34.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,754,840 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $87,040,000 after purchasing an additional 446,317 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,749,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $86,794,000 after purchasing an additional 162,201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Commercial Metals by 45.8% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,576,316 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $78,185,000 after buying an additional 495,163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.90% of the company's stock.

Commercial Metals Stock Performance

CMC traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $52.41. 81,364 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,116,460. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Commercial Metals Company has a 52 week low of $37.92 and a 52 week high of $64.53. The company's 50-day moving average is $50.17 and its 200 day moving average is $48.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a PE ratio of 168.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.26.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 23rd. The basic materials company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.11). Commercial Metals had a net margin of 0.48% and a return on equity of 7.45%. The company had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.02 EPS. Commercial Metals's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Commercial Metals Company will post 3.09 EPS for the current year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Commercial Metals's payout ratio is currently 232.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on CMC shares. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Commercial Metals in a report on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Commercial Metals from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded Commercial Metals from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $57.50 target price on Commercial Metals in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $55.00 price target (down previously from $57.00) on shares of Commercial Metals in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $57.50.

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.