HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 57,998 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,723 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $13,308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. NBH Bank acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on STLD shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $270.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $260.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Steel Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $258.45.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of STLD stock opened at $240.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 3.18. The firm has a market cap of $34.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.50. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $242.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $226.31. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a one year low of $129.41 and a one year high of $288.74.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The basic materials company reported $3.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.06. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 7.83% and a return on equity of 18.12%. The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 33.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 17.16 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Steel Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.22%.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a steel producer and metals recycler headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Founded in 1993, the company operates electric arc furnaces that use recycled steel and other metallic inputs to manufacture a broad range of steel products. Its customers include companies in the construction, automotive, manufacturing, transportation, energy and appliance industries.

Steel Dynamics' steel operations produce flat-rolled steel, structural steel, rail, engineered bar products and other specialty steel products.

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