Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Price Target Cut to $62.00 by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by Jefferies Financial Group from $65.00 to $62.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the basic materials company's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on CMC. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Commercial Metals from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Commercial Metals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Commercial Metals in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. BNP Paribas lowered Commercial Metals from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group restated a "sell" rating and set a $56.00 price objective (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Commercial Metals in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Commercial Metals currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.17.

Commercial Metals Trading Up 3.3 %

NYSE:CMC traded up $1.62 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $50.51. 1,762,591 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,331,490. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.19. Commercial Metals has a one year low of $47.42 and a one year high of $64.53. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.01. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.85 billion. Commercial Metals had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Commercial Metals will post 4.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 16th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 16th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Commercial Metals's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Commercial Metals

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMC. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,132,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 122.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,245,535 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $68,455,000 after purchasing an additional 686,519 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec purchased a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the 3rd quarter worth about $16,731,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Commercial Metals by 204.3% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 420,808 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $21,570,000 after buying an additional 282,511 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Commercial Metals by 17.5% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 774,218 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $42,203,000 after buying an additional 115,326 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.