Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Worthington Steel shares gapped up pre-market, opening at $39.70 versus the prior close of $37.74; last trade was about $38.44 on ~49,900 shares.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed — the stock's average rating is Hold with an average target of $46, reflecting one Buy, one Hold and one Sell (recent downgrades from Wall Street Zen and Zacks, while KeyCorp initiated coverage as Overweight).
• Worthington missed estimates in the most recent quarter (EPS $0.27 vs. consensus $0.47; revenue $769.8M vs. ~$883M estimate), announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 (annualized $0.64, ~1.7% yield), and insiders have been buying shares.

Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $37.74, but opened at $39.70. Worthington Steel shares last traded at $38.4380, with a volume of 49,886 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Worthington Steel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Worthington Steel in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $46.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Worthington Steel from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.00.

Worthington Steel Stock Up 0.1%

The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of $1.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.23 and a beta of 2.06. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.75.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 26th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $769.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $882.95 million. Worthington Steel had a return on equity of 10.12% and a net margin of 3.64%.Worthington Steel's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.35 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Worthington Steel, Inc. will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Worthington Steel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Scott J. Kelly purchased 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $39.11 per share, with a total value of $273,770.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 16,157 shares of the company's stock, valued at $631,900.27. This trade represents a 76.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jon J. Bowsher purchased 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $40.15 per share, for a total transaction of $100,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 17,893 shares in the company, valued at $718,403.95. This trade represents a 16.24% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Worthington Steel

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WS. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Worthington Steel by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 15,771 shares of the company's stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel by 89.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 50,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 23,899 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in Worthington Steel in the 2nd quarter worth about $670,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Worthington Steel by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 127,877 shares of the company's stock worth $3,815,000 after buying an additional 4,756 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.41% of the company's stock.

Worthington Steel Company Profile

Worthington Steel NYSE: WS is a leading North American steel processor specializing in the production of flat-rolled, coated and painted sheet and coil products. Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Worthington Industries, the company serves a broad range of industries, including construction, automotive, appliance, energy and agricultural equipment. Its core business activities encompass the processing, finishing and distribution of carbon and advanced high-strength steels, aluminum and stainless products to manufacturers across the continent.

The company’s product portfolio includes hot-dip galvanizing, galvannealed, aluminized and pre-painted steel products, as well as cold-rolled and hot-rolled coil.

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