Short Interest in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Decreases By 25.2%

Key Points

• Short interest in Steel Dynamics, Inc. has decreased by 25.2%, dropping from 3,020,000 shares to 2,260,000 shares as of August 31st.
• The company reported earnings of $2.01 per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $2.05 and generating a net margin of 6.07%.
• Steel Dynamics announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, representing a 1.5% dividend yield, to be paid on October 10th.

Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,260,000 shares, a decline of 25.2% from the August 15th total of 3,020,000 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

STLD traded down $2.95 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $136.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 676,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,574,920. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.40. Steel Dynamics has a 12 month low of $103.17 and a 12 month high of $155.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $129.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.05.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.04). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 11.88%. The business had revenue of $4.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Steel Dynamics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STLD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $138.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Steel Dynamics from $143.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $149.40.

Insider Activity

In other Steel Dynamics news, SVP Christopher A. Graham sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.71, for a total value of $1,520,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 66,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,456,371.98. This trade represents a 15.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $654,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,904 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 4,857 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 29,501 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,365,000 after buying an additional 921 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 12,304 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 73.3% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 351,571 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $40,103,000 after acquiring an additional 148,719 shares in the last quarter. 82.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.

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