United States Steel (NYSE:X) Hits New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $54.24 and last traded at $53.05, with a volume of 9654437 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on X shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on United States Steel from $39.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of United States Steel from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wolfe Research reissued a "peer perform" rating on shares of United States Steel in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Glj Research downgraded United States Steel from a "strong-buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United States Steel has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $43.80.

United States Steel Stock Up 0.6%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.50 and a 200 day moving average of $39.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $12.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.75, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.87.

United States Steel (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.04). United States Steel had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 4.27%. The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.82 earnings per share. United States Steel's quarterly revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that United States Steel Co. will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. United States Steel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.97%.

Institutional Trading of United States Steel

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of United States Steel during the fourth quarter worth $130,731,000. Third Point LLC bought a new position in United States Steel during the 1st quarter worth $153,192,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in United States Steel by 448.9% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 2,641,762 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $111,641,000 after buying an additional 2,160,512 shares during the period. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of United States Steel in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,795,000. Finally, NWI Management LP bought a new stake in shares of United States Steel in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,946,000. Institutional investors own 81.92% of the company's stock.

About United States Steel

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.