National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) Shares Shorted: Short Interest Up 76.4% in September

Key Points

• Short interest in National Steel surged 76.4% in September to 7.35 million shares, representing 0.6% of shares outstanding and 0.8 days to cover based on average trading volume.
• Shares fell 3.7% to $1.17, while the company reported a quarterly loss of $0.12 per share, revenue of $2.18 billion, and negative net margins and return on equity.
• Analyst sentiment is strongly negative: three analysts rate the stock “Sell,” consensus is “Strong Sell,” and the average price target is $1.40.

National Steel Company (NYSE:SID - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 7,347,692 shares, an increase of 76.4% from the September 15th total of 4,164,960 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 8,711,858 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

National Steel Stock Down 3.7%

SID stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $1.17. 3,765,400 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,242,976. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.15. National Steel has a 1-year low of $0.84 and a 1-year high of $2.20. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $1.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.15. The company has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.43 and a beta of 1.55.

National Steel (NYSE:SID - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The basic materials company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.12). The business had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.13 billion. National Steel had a negative net margin of 5.26% and a negative return on equity of 14.90%. On average, equities analysts forecast that National Steel will post -0.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SID has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of National Steel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of National Steel in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of National Steel from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" and a consensus target price of $1.40.

About National Steel

Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional, commonly known as CSN or National Steel, is a Brazilian industrial company engaged primarily in the production and sale of steel. Its product portfolio includes flat steel, long steel, galvanized steel and tinplate products, which serve customers in industries such as construction, automotive manufacturing, packaging and general manufacturing.

CSN also operates businesses that support its steel activities, including iron ore mining, cement production and logistics.

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