POSCO (NYSE:PKX) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• POSCO's share price passed above its 200‑day moving average, trading as high as $58.35 and last at $57.53 compared with the 200‑day average of $55.63, suggesting a technical breakout.
• Recent quarterly results disappointed: POSCO reported ($0.61) EPS versus analysts' $0.45 estimate and missed revenue forecasts ($10.61B vs. $11.85B), with low net margin and return on equity.
• Analyst and institutional views are mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" (one Buy, one Hold, one Sell), even as large investors such as Goldman Sachs have significantly increased their positions.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $55.63 and traded as high as $58.35. POSCO shares last traded at $57.53, with a volume of 240,040 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of POSCO in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, POSCO currently has an average rating of "Hold".

POSCO Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.58, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $61.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.63.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On POSCO

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of POSCO by 8.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,462 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in POSCO by 57.3% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 423,253 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $20,117,000 after purchasing an additional 154,100 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in POSCO by 31.5% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,135 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 3,387 shares in the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in POSCO in the 2nd quarter valued at about $420,000. Finally, MAI Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of POSCO in the 2nd quarter valued at about $73,000.

POSCO Company Profile

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.

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