Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Sells 265,466 Shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Free Report) by 59.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 180,596 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 265,466 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Gerdau were worth $513,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GGB. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Gerdau by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 70,116 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 6,555 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new position in Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $1,279,000. Carrera Capital Advisors purchased a new position in Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $65,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gerdau Stock Performance

Gerdau stock opened at $2.97 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.89. Gerdau S.A. has a 1-year low of $2.27 and a 1-year high of $3.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.91 and a beta of 1.38.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of 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 note 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.

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