POSCO (NYSE:PKX) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• POSCO shares gapped up from a previous close of $51.38 to open at $53.44, driven by positive analyst upgrades, with its last traded price at $53.77.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on POSCO, with one "Buy," one "Hold," and one "Sell," resulting in an overall average rating of "Hold."
• For the last quarter, POSCO reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.35, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52, along with a revenue of $12.66 billion, below the expected $13.21 billion.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $51.38, but opened at $53.44. POSCO shares last traded at $53.77, with a volume of 18,430 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PKX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded POSCO from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 4th. UBS Group upgraded shares of POSCO from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of POSCO in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of POSCO from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. One equities research 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. According to MarketBeat, POSCO has an average rating of "Hold".

POSCO Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company's 50 day moving average is $51.17 and its 200-day moving average is $49.92. The company has a market capitalization of $16.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.46.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $12.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.21 billion. POSCO had a return on equity of 0.82% and a net margin of 0.69%. Equities analysts anticipate that POSCO will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PKX. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of POSCO by 329.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,605 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in POSCO during the 1st quarter valued at about $212,000. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of POSCO during the 1st quarter valued at about $201,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in POSCO by 27.1% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,819 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in POSCO by 30.8% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,663 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $697,000 after purchasing an additional 3,453 shares during the last quarter.

POSCO Company Profile

POSCO Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated steel producer in Korea and internationally. It operates through six segments: Steel, Trading, Construction, Logistics and Others, Green Materials and Energy, and Others. The company engages in the production, import, sale, and export of steel products, such as hot and cold rolled steel, stainless steel, plates, wire rods, and silicon steel sheets, as well as pig iron, billets, blooms, and slabs; trading of steel and raw materials, textiles, agricultural commodities, and other goods; natural resources development and power generation activities; and planning, designing, and construction of industrial plants, civil engineering projects, and commercial and residential buildings.

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