Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Stock Price Down 3.3% - What's Next?

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) dropped 3.3% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $2.81 and last traded at $2.83. Approximately 752,140 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 9,206,088 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GGB. Bank of America restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Monday. UBS Group began coverage on Gerdau in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock.

Gerdau Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $2.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The company has a market cap of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Gerdau Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued 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 2.85%. Gerdau's payout ratio is 13.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Gerdau by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 98,194,996 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $282,802,000 after buying an additional 9,215,971 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 107.4% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 12,645,660 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,420,000 after acquiring an additional 6,548,200 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Gerdau by 130.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 10,095,722 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $29,076,000 after purchasing an additional 5,718,323 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in Gerdau by 49.9% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 14,804,499 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $42,637,000 after buying an additional 4,928,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new position in shares of Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,775,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gerdau Company Profile

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.