ProShare Advisors LLC Sells 8,971 Shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X)

ProShare Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X - Free Report) by 46.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,535 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 8,971 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC's holdings in United States Steel were worth $358,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in X. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in United States Steel by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,575 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of United States Steel by 153.7% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,201 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 9,210 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in United States Steel by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 23,936 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $814,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United States Steel by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,781 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of United States Steel by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,796 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 3,216 shares during the period. 81.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Glj Research reaffirmed a "sell" rating on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a "peer perform" rating on shares of United States Steel in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on United States Steel from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down from $43.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, March 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.37.

United States Steel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE X traded up $0.70 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $53.93. 18,740,951 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,109,705. The stock has a market cap of $12.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.19, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.82. United States Steel Co. has a one year low of $26.92 and a one year high of $54.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $43.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.00.

United States Steel (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.54 billion. United States Steel had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 4.27%. The company's revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United States Steel Co. will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. United States Steel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.97%.

United States Steel Profile

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.