Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $2.63, but opened at $2.81. Gerdau shares last traded at $2.81, with a volume of 1,551,109 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on GGB. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Gerdau from $3.30 to $2.90 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Monday, April 7th.

Gerdau Trading Down 0.7%

The stock has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a PE ratio of 6.56 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $2.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.0188 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.95%. This is an increase from Gerdau's previous dividend of $0.00. Gerdau's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.14%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gerdau

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GGB. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Gerdau by 16.8% in the first quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 26,949 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 3,873 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of Gerdau by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 53,736 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $155,000 after buying an additional 4,657 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of Gerdau by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 840,148 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 5,424 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Gerdau by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 70,116 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 6,555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Gerdau by 2.4% in the first quarter. Virtus Family Office LLC now owns 303,899 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $863,000 after buying an additional 7,247 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.49% of the company's stock.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.