Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) Downgraded to "Buy" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Steel Dynamics from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating in a research note issued Saturday.
• The analyst community is split—five Buy and five Hold ratings—leaving an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $184.22.
• In the latest quarter Steel Dynamics reported $1.82 EPS (beating the $1.72 estimate) but revenue of $4.41B missed expectations of $4.62B; the stock trades around $181.61 with a market cap of about $26.3B and a PE of 22.67.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

STLD has been the topic of several other research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $194.00 price target (up from $173.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Friday, January 9th. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Steel Dynamics from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Steel Dynamics in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Steel Dynamics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $184.22.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of Steel Dynamics stock opened at $181.61 on Friday. Steel Dynamics has a 52 week low of $103.17 and a 52 week high of $208.47. The company has a current ratio of 3.06, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $26.31 billion, a PE ratio of 22.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.43. The company's 50-day moving average price is $184.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $162.09.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.10. Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 13.56%. The company had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.36 EPS. The business's revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Steel Dynamics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 3.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,300,813 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $938,196,000 after buying an additional 230,582 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,623,054 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $613,926,000 after acquiring an additional 9,959 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter worth about $586,702,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $564,590,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Steel Dynamics by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,340,480 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $322,518,000 after acquiring an additional 252,108 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a U.S.-based, diversified steel producer and metals recycler that operates an integrated network of mini-mills, finishing lines and fabrication facilities. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company manufactures a broad range of steel products and provides downstream processing, coating and fabrication services to industrial customers. Its operations combine steelmaking using electric-arc furnaces with extensive metals recycling capabilities, allowing Steel Dynamics to convert scrap ferrous and nonferrous materials into finished steel products.

The company's product portfolio includes flat-rolled steel (coiled and sheet products), structural steel and fabricated components, along with coated and painted steel used in consumer, industrial and construction applications.

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