Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes $237,000 Position in Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. recently acquired 5,147 shares of Commercial Metals Company, worth approximately $237,000, marking a notable investment in the basic materials sector.
• Several hedge funds have increased their stakes in Commercial Metals, collectively holding 86.90% of the stock, showcasing strong institutional interest.
• Despite a net margin of only 0.48% and missing earnings estimates, Commercial Metals declared a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, supporting a dividend yield of 1.3%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Commercial Metals by 4,372.6% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 759,484 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $34,944,000 after buying an additional 742,503 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 27.5% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,089,313 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $142,139,000 after buying an additional 666,886 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Commercial Metals by 15,350.0% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 568,095 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $28,178,000 after purchasing an additional 564,418 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Commercial Metals by 34.1% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,754,840 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $87,040,000 after purchasing an additional 446,317 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Commercial Metals by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,749,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $86,794,000 after purchasing an additional 162,201 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Commercial Metals in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Commercial Metals from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (down from $57.00) on shares of Commercial Metals in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $57.50.

Commercial Metals Trading Up 4.3%

Commercial Metals stock traded up $2.36 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $57.78. 464,986 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,102,040. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.21. Commercial Metals Company has a 52 week low of $37.92 and a 52 week high of $64.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.47 billion, a PE ratio of 186.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, June 23rd. The basic materials company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.11). Commercial Metals had a return on equity of 7.45% and a net margin of 0.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.02 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Commercial Metals Company will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Commercial Metals's payout ratio is presently 232.26%.

Commercial Metals Profile

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.