Engineers Gate Manager LP Acquires 3,890,093 Shares of Gerdau S.A. $GGB

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP more than doubled its Gerdau stake in the second quarter, acquiring 3.89 million additional shares and bringing its holdings to 7.01 million shares, worth approximately $28.3 million.
• Gerdau reported quarterly earnings of $0.15 per share and revenue of $3.45 billion, both broadly in line or above analyst expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.0448 per share, implying a 3.6% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Goldman Sachs and Bank of America downgraded the stock to “neutral,” while UBS and JPMorgan raised their price targets. The overall consensus rating is Hold, with a $5.57 target price.

Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its holdings in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Free Report) by 124.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,010,275 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 3,890,093 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP owned approximately 0.36% of Gerdau worth $28,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Gerdau by 68.9% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,634 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Gerdau by 95.3% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 5,216 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the third quarter worth $34,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Greenspring Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gerdau Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:GGB opened at $5.00 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a PE ratio of 21.76 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a current ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Gerdau S.A. has a 12-month low of $3.03 and a 12-month high of $5.18. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $4.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.37.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15. The firm had revenue of $3.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.41 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 7.97% and a net margin of 3.37%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.0448 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. This is a positive change from Gerdau's previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. This represents a $0.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Gerdau's payout ratio is presently 65.22%.

Insider Transactions at Gerdau

In related news, CEO Gustavo Werneck da Cunha acquired 165,224 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $4.73 per share, with a total value of $781,509.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 165,224 shares of the company's stock, valued at $781,509.52. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rafael Japur sold 10,000 shares of Gerdau stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total transaction of $51,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 86,967 shares of the company's stock, valued at $443,531.70. This trade represents a 10.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Gerdau to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Bank of America lowered shares of Gerdau from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $5.10 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $6.10 price target (up from $5.70) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Thursday, August 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Gerdau from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Gerdau from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $5.57.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA is a Brazilian-based steel producer engaged in the manufacture and distribution of long steel products for the construction, industrial and agricultural sectors. Established in 1901, the company operates an integrated network of electric-arc furnaces and rolling mills, producing reinforcement bars, wire rod, merchant bars and structural shapes. Gerdau's product portfolio also includes specialty long steel, high-yield reinforcement, rail, beams and steel coils, as well as value-added processing services such as cutting, bending and coating.

The company has expanded its footprint beyond Brazil, with significant operations in North America, South America and a presence in select European markets.

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