Meeder Asset Management Inc. Buys 39,579 Shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

Key Points

• Meeder Asset Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in Steel Dynamics, owning 39,669 shares worth approximately $4.96 million after a 43,976.7% increase in the first quarter.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Forum Financial Management LP, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC, and Sunbelt Securities Inc., have made small increases to their investments in Steel Dynamics during recent quarters, emphasizing a strong interest from institutional investors.
• Analyst ratings for Steel Dynamics show a mix of opinions, with the stock receiving upgrades to “outperform” from BMO Capital Markets and raising its price target to $145, while Wall Street Zen has cut its rating to “sell.”

Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 43,976.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 39,669 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 39,579 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $4,962,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 194.7% during 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 acquired a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. 82.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gabriel Shaheen sold 1,254 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.11, for a total value of $168,173.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 81,812 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,971,807.32. This trade represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 7,495 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 125,319 shares in the company, valued at $16,950,647.94. This represents a 5.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,749 shares of company stock valued at $2,702,468. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

Steel Dynamics stock traded down $4.87 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $122.69. The company had a trading volume of 945,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,650,474. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $130.85 and a 200 day moving average of $128.25. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a one year low of $103.17 and a one year high of $155.56. The firm has a market cap of $18.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 11.88% and a net margin of 6.07%. The company had revenue of $4.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.72 earnings per share. Steel Dynamics's revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Profile

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.