POSCO (NYSE:PKX) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Strong Sell

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded POSCO from a "hold" to a "strong sell," and Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" — the consensus rating on MarketBeat is "Reduce" (1 Buy, 1 Hold, 2 Sell).
• POSCO reported Q4 EPS of ($0.61), missing estimates by $1.06 and posting revenue of $10.61 billion versus $11.85 billion expected, with very low profitability (ROE 1.09%, net margin 0.97%).
• Shares trade around $63 with a market cap of $19.11 billion and a high PE of 47.87 despite weak results, while institutional investors including Goldman Sachs and UBS have recently increased their stakes.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of POSCO in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, POSCO has an average rating of "Reduce".

POSCO Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PKX opened at $63.19 on Thursday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $61.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.48. POSCO has a 12-month low of $42.35 and a 12-month high of $71.35. The firm has a market cap of $19.11 billion, a PE ratio of 47.87, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The basic materials company reported ($0.61) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($1.06). POSCO had a return on equity of 1.09% and a net margin of 0.97%.The business had revenue of $10.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.85 billion. Equities research analysts predict that POSCO will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On POSCO

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PKX. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in POSCO in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,851,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in POSCO in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,223,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in POSCO by 57.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 423,253 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $20,117,000 after purchasing an additional 154,100 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in POSCO by 135.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 199,914 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $10,637,000 after purchasing an additional 115,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in POSCO by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 549,699 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,051,000 after purchasing an additional 68,104 shares during the last quarter.

About POSCO

POSCO NYSE: PKX is a South Korea–based integrated steel producer founded in 1968 as Pohang Iron and Steel Company. Headquartered in Pohang, the company grew rapidly as part of South Korea's industrialization program and developed large, integrated steelworks—most notably in Pohang and Gwangyang—that helped establish POSCO among the world's largest steelmakers. It is structured as a diversified industrial group with steelmaking at its core and a range of downstream and trading businesses.

The company's primary activities include ironmaking and steelmaking, producing a wide array of steel products such as hot-rolled and cold-rolled sheets, coated steels, plates, stainless and special steels, long products (bars and wire rods), and seamless pipes.

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.