Insider Selling: Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) EVP Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Gerdau EVP Mauricio Metz sold 5,000 shares on May 26 at an average price of $4.70, totaling $23,500. After the sale, he held 29,536 shares, down 14.48% from his prior position.
• This was part of a broader pattern of insider selling by Metz, who had also sold shares multiple times in the preceding weeks, including 5,000 shares on May 13 and smaller sales in April and early May.
• Gerdau recently reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings per share of $0.10 versus the $0.15 consensus and revenue of $3.22 billion versus $3.36 billion expected, even as the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.0361 per share.

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) EVP Mauricio Metz sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.70, for a total value of $23,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 29,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $138,819.20. This represents a 14.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Mauricio Metz also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, May 13th, Mauricio Metz sold 5,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.85, for a total value of $24,250.00.
• On Tuesday, May 5th, Mauricio Metz sold 2,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.69, for a total value of $9,380.00.
• On Tuesday, April 28th, Mauricio Metz sold 1,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.53, for a total value of $4,530.00.
• On Friday, April 10th, Mauricio Metz sold 1,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.24, for a total value of $4,240.00.

Gerdau Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of GGB traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $4.65. 16,228,526 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,618,713. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Gerdau S.A. has a 1-year low of $2.61 and a 1-year high of $4.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03 and a beta of 1.51. The business has a fifty day moving average of $4.20 and a 200-day moving average of $3.98.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.36 billion. Gerdau had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 6.76%. Analysts expect that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.51 EPS for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.0361 per share. This is an increase from Gerdau's previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Gerdau's payout ratio is currently 75.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on GGB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Gerdau from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Scotiabank upgraded Gerdau from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $5.25 price objective (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Itau BBA Securities raised Gerdau from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4.60 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5.12.

Institutional Trading of Gerdau

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGB. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Gerdau by 11,393.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 13,222,623 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $47,734,000 after purchasing an additional 13,107,580 shares during the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in Gerdau by 49.2% during the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 24,211,588 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $89,341,000 after purchasing an additional 7,982,296 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Gerdau by 76.1% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 10,936,524 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $39,481,000 after purchasing an additional 4,725,200 shares during the last quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Gerdau by 169.2% during the 3rd quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 7,189,270 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $22,287,000 after purchasing an additional 4,519,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Gerdau during the 1st quarter worth approximately $9,618,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA is a Brazilian-based steel producer engaged in the manufacture and distribution of long steel products for the construction, industrial and agricultural sectors. Established in 1901, the company operates an integrated network of electric-arc furnaces and rolling mills, producing reinforcement bars, wire rod, merchant bars and structural shapes. Gerdau's product portfolio also includes specialty long steel, high-yield reinforcement, rail, beams and steel coils, as well as value-added processing services such as cutting, bending and coating.

The company has expanded its footprint beyond Brazil, with significant operations in North America, South America and a presence in select European markets.

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