Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $144.25.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on STLD. Bank of America raised Steel Dynamics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $140.00 to $155.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $129.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Steel Dynamics from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $149.00 target price (up from $145.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ STLD traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $114.07. 860,482 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,293,487. Steel Dynamics has a twelve month low of $104.60 and a twelve month high of $155.56. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $133.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $127.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.39. The company has a market cap of $17.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 1.31.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The basic materials company reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.18 billion. Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 9.80%. The business's revenue was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.47 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics will post 10.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Steel Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Steel Dynamics's payout ratio is 16.65%.

Insider Transactions at Steel Dynamics

In other Steel Dynamics news, VP Chad Bickford sold 2,000 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.86, for a total value of $269,720.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 17,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,306,106. The trade was a 10.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 6,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.00, for a total transaction of $950,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 116,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,723,707. The trade was a 5.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,591 shares of company stock worth $3,885,938. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Steel Dynamics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 532.6% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 33.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 400 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $61,000. Institutional investors own 82.41% of the company's stock.

About Steel Dynamics

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.