Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) Short Interest Up 19.8% in December

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,180,000 shares, a growth of 19.8% from the December 15th total of 15,180,000 shares. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 10,810,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.7 days.

Gerdau Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GGB traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $2.84. The stock had a trading volume of 15,201,608 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,803,218. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 1.73. Gerdau has a twelve month low of $2.67 and a twelve month high of $4.04. The business's fifty day moving average is $3.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a $0.0528 dividend. This is a boost from Gerdau's previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.45%. Gerdau's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Gerdau by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 23,076 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 5,903 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Gerdau by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 152,685 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $534,000 after buying an additional 34,069 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Gerdau in the 3rd quarter valued at $525,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Gerdau in the third quarter valued at $189,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.