UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Increases Holdings in Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Key Points

• UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in Steel Dynamics, Inc. by 65.6%, acquiring an additional 11,732 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 29,610 shares valued at approximately $3.70 million.
• Steel Dynamics reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, falling short of the consensus estimate of $2.05, while the company’s revenue was $4.57 billion, which was also below expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, which will be paid on October 10th, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.5% and a payout ratio of 29.15%.

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 65.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,610 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 11,732 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $3,704,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in Steel Dynamics by 493.9% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Steel Dynamics during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust increased 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 worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Steel Dynamics

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Graham sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total value of $1,520,520.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 66,738 shares in the company, valued at $8,456,371.98. The trade was a 15.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on STLD shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Steel Dynamics to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Steel Dynamics from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Steel Dynamics from $138.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $148.70.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

NASDAQ STLD traded down $3.34 on Friday, hitting $130.65. 718,892 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,578,660. The company has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The business's 50 day moving average price is $129.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.09. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $103.17 and a 52-week high of $155.56.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.82 billion. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 11.88%. Steel Dynamics's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.72 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Steel Dynamics's payout ratio is presently 29.15%.

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.