Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Trims Stake in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 49.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 8,131 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Steel Dynamics by 1,400.0% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 450 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 38.4% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 541 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of STLD traded up $1.28 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $136.06. 1,297,262 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,508,616. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.53. The company has a market cap of $20.20 billion, a PE ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.44. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $103.17 and a 52-week high of $155.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $124.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.18.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.17 billion. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 17.32%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, February 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the basic materials company to repurchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Steel Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on STLD shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $149.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $140.00 price target on Steel Dynamics and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wolfe Research raised Steel Dynamics from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Steel Dynamics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $135.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Steel Dynamics from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.44.

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.