Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $158.00 price objective on the basic materials company's stock, up from their prior price objective of $145.00. Morgan Stanley's price target indicates a potential upside of 30.84% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $134.00 to $132.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Steel Dynamics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $125.00 to $145.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $155.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Steel Dynamics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $148.56.

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Steel Dynamics Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Steel Dynamics stock traded up $1.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $120.76. The stock had a trading volume of 2,392,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,358,768. Steel Dynamics has a 12-month low of $104.60 and a 12-month high of $155.56. The firm has a market cap of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $126.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.33). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 17.32%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.61 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics declared that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Steel Dynamics

In related news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 122,140 shares of the company's stock, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 6.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 532.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. 82.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.