Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Upgraded by UBS Group to "Neutral" Rating

UBS Group upgraded shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC - Free Report) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research note released on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has $54.00 price objective on the basic materials company's stock, down from their prior price objective of $56.00.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wolfe Research downgraded Commercial Metals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Commercial Metals in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Commercial Metals in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.83.

Commercial Metals Stock Down 1.2 %

Commercial Metals stock traded down $0.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.02. 1,666,918 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,469,292. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $5.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.19. Commercial Metals has a 1-year low of $45.50 and a 1-year high of $64.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $56.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.87.

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

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 16th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 16th. Commercial Metals's payout ratio is presently 17.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Commercial Metals

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tectonic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 1.6% during the third quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 17,774 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $977,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 6.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,602 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 4.6% during the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,392 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 4.2% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,160 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $394,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Commercial Metals by 6.0% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 5,908 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company's stock.

About Commercial Metals

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.