Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 68,392 Shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund significantly reduced its holdings in Steel Dynamics, cutting its stake by 70.7% during the first quarter, now owning 28,337 shares worth approximately $3.54 million.
• Analyst ratings are mixed, with JPMorgan Chase raising the price target to $150 and providing a "neutral" rating, while Wall Street Zen downgraded it to a "sell." Overall, the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy."
• Steel Dynamics reported Q2 earnings of $2.01 per share, falling short of the $2.05 expected, with revenues also below estimates at $4.57 billion, indicating a 1.5% year-over-year decline.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lessened its holdings in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 70.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,337 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 68,392 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $3,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 493.9% during the 1st quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 194.7% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 277 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Steel Dynamics Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of STLD stock traded down $2.77 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $125.45. 1,218,652 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,619,471. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $103.17 and a 1-year high of $155.56. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $129.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a PE ratio of 18.29, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.38.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.04). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 11.88%. The firm had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.72 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Steel Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $138.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Steel Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $148.70.

Insider Activity at Steel Dynamics

In other Steel Dynamics news, Director Gabriel Shaheen sold 1,254 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.11, for a total value of $168,173.94. Following the transaction, the director owned 81,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,971,807.32. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher A. Graham sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total transaction of $1,520,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 66,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,456,371.98. This represents a 15.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Steel Dynamics Company 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.