Paradiem LLC Has $11.40 Million Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

Paradiem LLC lessened its position in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 2.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 91,167 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 2,212 shares during the period. Steel Dynamics makes up approximately 3.1% of Paradiem LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Paradiem LLC owned about 0.06% of Steel Dynamics worth $11,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in STLD. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $336,426,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,592,670 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $409,816,000 after buying an additional 815,629 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,628,403 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $642,033,000 after buying an additional 451,630 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 18,398.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 447,661 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $55,993,000 after purchasing an additional 445,241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,179,062 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $362,636,000 after purchasing an additional 393,516 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:STLD traded down $4.21 during trading on Friday, hitting $125.90. 4,349,287 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,539,663. The business's 50 day moving average is $129.11 and its 200-day moving average is $126.13. The company has a market capitalization of $18.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $103.17 and a 1-year high of $155.56.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.17 billion. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 13.26%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Steel Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. Steel Dynamics's payout ratio is 26.42%.

Insider Activity at Steel Dynamics

In related news, Director Gabriel Shaheen sold 1,254 shares of the 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 sale, the director now directly owns 81,812 shares in the company, valued at $10,971,807.32. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 7,495 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.26, for a total value of $1,013,773.70. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 125,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,950,647.94. The trade was a 5.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Steel Dynamics from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group upgraded Steel Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $149.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Steel Dynamics from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wolfe Research upgraded Steel Dynamics from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Steel Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $148.00.

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.