Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C. Sells 1,057,828 Shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB)

Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C. lessened its stake in shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Free Report) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,219,112 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 1,057,828 shares during the quarter. Gerdau comprises about 18.7% of Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.92% of Gerdau worth $55,351,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Gerdau in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Zhang Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.49% of the company's stock.

Gerdau Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of GGB traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $2.62. The stock had a trading volume of 6,490,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,273,949. Gerdau S.A. has a 12-month low of $2.27 and a 12-month high of $4.04. The firm has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.98. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $2.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.03.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06. Gerdau had a return on equity of 7.74% and a net margin of 7.03%. The company had revenue of $2.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.66 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gerdau Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.0175 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. Gerdau's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Monday, April 7th.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.