Denali Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Worthington Steel, Inc. $WS

Key Points

• Denali Advisors LLC opened a new position in Worthington Steel in the fourth quarter, buying 67,700 shares worth about $2.34 million and ending with 0.13% ownership.
• Institutional interest remains significant, with hedge funds and asset managers holding 45.41% of the stock; meanwhile, analyst sentiment is mixed, with an average Hold rating and a $46.00 price target.
• Worthington Steel recently missed earnings and revenue expectations for the quarter, but the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, or $0.64 annually, yielding about 1.6%.

Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 67,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,344,000. Denali Advisors LLC owned 0.13% of Worthington Steel at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Worthington Steel by 14.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 15,771 shares of the company's stock valued at $399,000 after buying an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Worthington Steel by 89.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 50,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,269,000 after buying an additional 23,899 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Worthington Steel by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the second quarter valued at approximately $670,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Worthington Steel by 3.9% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 127,877 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,815,000 after buying an additional 4,756 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on WS shares. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $46.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Worthington Steel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Worthington Steel from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Worthington Steel presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.00.

Worthington Steel Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:WS opened at $40.45 on Friday. Worthington Steel, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.23 and a 1-year high of $49.17. The company has a 50-day moving average of $35.04 and a 200 day moving average of $36.18. The firm has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79 and a beta of 2.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.20). Worthington Steel had a return on equity of 10.12% and a net margin of 3.64%.The business had revenue of $769.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $882.95 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Worthington Steel, Inc. will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Worthington Steel's payout ratio is currently 37.65%.

Worthington Steel Profile

Worthington Steel NYSE: WS is a leading North American steel processor specializing in the production of flat-rolled, coated and painted sheet and coil products. Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Worthington Industries, the company serves a broad range of industries, including construction, automotive, appliance, energy and agricultural equipment. Its core business activities encompass the processing, finishing and distribution of carbon and advanced high-strength steels, aluminum and stainless products to manufacturers across the continent.

The company’s product portfolio includes hot-dip galvanizing, galvannealed, aluminized and pre-painted steel products, as well as cold-rolled and hot-rolled coil.

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