Marcos Eduardo Fara Wahrhaftig Sells 12,419 Shares of Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Stock

Key Points

• EVP Marcos Eduardo Fara Wahrhaftig sold 12,419 shares of Gerdau on April 9 at an average price of $4.06, for total proceeds of $50,421, as disclosed in an SEC filing.
• Gerdau missed quarterly estimates, reporting $0.07 EPS vs. $0.11 expected and $3.08B revenue vs. $3.12B expected, and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.0194 per share (about $0.08 annualized, ~1.8% yield).
• Several brokerages have raised ratings and targets (JPMorgan to $5.50 overweight, others upgraded), leaving a MarketBeat consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $4.90 target price.

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) EVP Marcos Eduardo Fara Wahrhaftig sold 12,419 shares of Gerdau stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.06, for a total value of $50,421.14. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Gerdau Price Performance

Gerdau stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $4.22. 15,325,578 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,475,500. The company has a market cap of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.13, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $3.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.71. Gerdau S.A. has a 52-week low of $2.46 and a 52-week high of $4.66.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.04). Gerdau had a net margin of 1.93% and a return on equity of 6.20%. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.12 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.0194 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Gerdau's payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GGB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Gerdau from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Gerdau from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4.60 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Scotiabank upgraded Gerdau from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Gerdau from $4.40 to $4.60 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $4.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GGB. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Gerdau by 65.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 582,949 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 231,588 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 54.6% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,363,764 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $12,393,000 after buying an additional 1,541,311 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 821.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,344,175 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,657,000 after buying an additional 2,089,675 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Gerdau by 88.8% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 70,079 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $205,000 after acquiring an additional 32,961 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 1.49% of the company's stock.

Gerdau Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.