POSCO (NYSE:PKX) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Shares of POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $55.61, but opened at $58.69. POSCO shares last traded at $59.16, with a volume of 24,800 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PKX. Wall Street Zen cut POSCO from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley upgraded POSCO from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 4th.

POSCO Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.89. The company has a 50-day moving average of $49.95 and a 200-day moving average of $47.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.35.

POSCO (NYSE:PKX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.05). POSCO had a net margin of 1.20% and a return on equity of 1.45%. The business had revenue of $12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.12 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that POSCO will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of POSCO by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 450,873 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $21,430,000 after buying an additional 21,609 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in POSCO by 57.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 423,253 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $20,117,000 after acquiring an additional 154,100 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of POSCO by 9.0% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 402,760 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $19,143,000 after acquiring an additional 33,366 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in POSCO by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 254,219 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $11,023,000 after buying an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in POSCO during the 1st quarter worth $7,814,000.

About POSCO

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.