Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Shares Sold by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Key Points

• Empirical Financial Services LLC decreased its ownership in Steel Dynamics, Inc. by 91.4%, reducing its stake to 2,352 shares after selling 25,021 shares in the first quarter.
• Insider selling activity has been notable, with SVP Miguel Alvarez selling 7,495 shares for over $1 million, resulting in a 5.64% decrease in his ownership, while an additional SVP sold 12,000 shares.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a revenue decline of 1.5% year-over-year, with earnings per share of $2.01 falling short of analysts' estimates of $2.05.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management trimmed its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 91.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,352 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 25,021 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $294,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 194.7% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 277 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 82.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on STLD shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $138.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $149.33.

Steel Dynamics Trading Down 1.1%

Steel Dynamics stock traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $122.23. The company had a trading volume of 969,639 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,266,610. The firm has a market cap of $18.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 3.13. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $103.17 and a 1 year high of $155.56. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $130.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $128.22.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.82 billion. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 11.88%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.72 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Steel Dynamics

In other Steel Dynamics news, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 7,495 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.26, for a total transaction of $1,013,773.70. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 125,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,950,647.94. This trade represents a 5.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gabriel Shaheen sold 1,254 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.11, for a total transaction of $168,173.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 81,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,971,807.32. The trade was a 1.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 20,749 shares of company stock valued at $2,702,468. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.