Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Algoma Steel Group (NASDAQ:ASTL)

Algoma Steel Group Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTL - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders bought 10,249 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 308% compared to the average volume of 2,515 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASTL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Canada cut shares of Algoma Steel Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Algoma Steel Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Algoma Steel Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Algoma Steel Group Price Performance

ASTL traded down $0.02 during trading on Monday, reaching $5.86. 1,623,376 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 765,456. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 3.31. Algoma Steel Group has a 12-month low of $4.17 and a 12-month high of $12.14. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.24. The company has a market cap of $614.91 million, a P/E ratio of -4.61 and a beta of 1.56.

Algoma Steel Group (NASDAQ:ASTL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.36. Algoma Steel Group had a negative net margin of 6.30% and a negative return on equity of 10.63%. The business had revenue of $359.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $327.56 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Algoma Steel Group will post -0.63 EPS for the current year.

Algoma Steel Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 13th. Algoma Steel Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -12.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Algoma Steel Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. grew its holdings in Algoma Steel Group by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 8,088,120 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,838,000 after buying an additional 20,517 shares in the last quarter. MMCAP International Inc. SPC grew its holdings in Algoma Steel Group by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. MMCAP International Inc. SPC now owns 6,641,417 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,996,000 after buying an additional 21,414 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its holdings in Algoma Steel Group by 59.2% during the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,844,439 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,819,000 after buying an additional 1,057,517 shares in the last quarter. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Algoma Steel Group by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,179,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,320,000 after purchasing an additional 22,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Algoma Steel Group by 24.6% in the first quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,463,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,945,000 after purchasing an additional 288,861 shares in the last quarter. 72.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Algoma Steel Group Company Profile

Algoma Steel Group Inc produces and sells steel products primarily in North America. The company provides flat/sheet steel products, including temper rolling, cold rolled, hot-rolled pickled and oiled products, floor plate, and cut-to-length products for the automotive industry, hollow structural product manufacturers, and the light manufacturing and transportation industries; and plate steel products that consist of rolled, hot-rolled, and heat-treated for use in the construction or manufacture of railcars, buildings, bridges, off-highway equipment, storage tanks, ships, and military applications.