Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Has $5.19 Million Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Free Report) by 11.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,491 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,573 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $5,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 532.6% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the period. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. 82.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

Shares of Steel Dynamics stock traded up $0.34 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $128.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,243,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,394,304. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a one year low of $104.60 and a one year high of $155.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.53. The firm has a market cap of $19.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.34. The business's fifty day moving average price is $128.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.43.

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Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.33). Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 8.76%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to buy up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Steel Dynamics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. Steel Dynamics's dividend payout ratio is 20.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.67, for a total value of $3,184,810.83. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 122,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,448,593.80. This trade represents a 16.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on STLD. Citigroup dropped their target price on Steel Dynamics from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $149.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Steel Dynamics from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $158.00 in a research report on Friday, March 7th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $155.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $155.00 target price on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Steel Dynamics currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $148.56.

Steel Dynamics Company Profile

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.