Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 251,391 Shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X)

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X - Free Report) by 199.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 377,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 251,391 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.17% of United States Steel worth $13,332,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in United States Steel during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Palouse Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in United States Steel in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in United States Steel by 339.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,001 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 773 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in United States Steel during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in United States Steel during the 1st quarter worth $58,000. 81.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on X. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of United States Steel from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on United States Steel from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on United States Steel in a research note on Monday, August 19th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Glj Research upgraded shares of United States Steel from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $38.57 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of United States Steel from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, September 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Steel currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.80.

United States Steel Trading Up 8.3 %

X stock traded up $3.23 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $42.31. The company had a trading volume of 11,248,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,389,012. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. United States Steel Co. has a one year low of $26.92 and a one year high of $50.20. The business has a 50-day moving average of $36.65 and a 200-day moving average of $37.71. The stock has a market cap of $9.53 billion, a PE ratio of 27.84 and a beta of 1.86.

United States Steel (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. United States Steel had a return on equity of 6.01% and a net margin of 2.41%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.36 EPS. Research analysts predict that United States Steel Co. will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. United States Steel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.16%.

United States Steel 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.