United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X) Given Consensus Rating of "Buy" by Analysts

Shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $42.80.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on X shares. Glj Research raised shares of United States Steel from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $38.57 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on United States Steel from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of United States Steel from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of United States Steel in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of United States Steel from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th.

United States Steel Stock Performance

NYSE:X traded up $3.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $42.31. The stock had a trading volume of 11,256,524 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,389,012. United States Steel has a 12-month low of $26.92 and a 12-month high of $50.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.68. The stock has a market cap of $9.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.71 and a beta of 1.86.

United States Steel (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $3.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. United States Steel had a net margin of 2.41% and a return on equity of 6.01%. United States Steel's revenue for the quarter was down 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that United States Steel will post 2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. United States Steel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United States Steel

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in X. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in United States Steel by 4,305.6% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,634,364 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $137,379,000 after acquiring an additional 3,551,870 shares during the last quarter. KGH Ltd increased its holdings in United States Steel by 68.2% in the 2nd quarter. KGH Ltd now owns 4,255,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $160,839,000 after buying an additional 1,724,670 shares in the last quarter. Murchinson Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of United States Steel by 66.5% during the first quarter. Murchinson Ltd. now owns 2,100,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $85,638,000 after purchasing an additional 838,653 shares during the last quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in United States Steel during the 2nd quarter valued at $22,770,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in United States Steel by 4,445.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 571,326 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $20,185,000 after acquiring an additional 558,757 shares during the last quarter. 81.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United States Steel Company Profile

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.