Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stock Holdings in United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X)

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X - Free Report) by 26.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 477,016 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 99,665 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.21% of United States Steel worth $16,214,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. boosted its position in United States Steel by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 4,719,845 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $166,752,000 after acquiring an additional 326,876 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in United States Steel by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,598,831 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $162,477,000 after acquiring an additional 964,467 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in United States Steel by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,839,684 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $135,691,000 after acquiring an additional 37,528 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United States Steel by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,600,708 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $91,883,000 after buying an additional 28,293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of United States Steel in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $91,712,000. 81.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

X has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of United States Steel in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on United States Steel from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on United States Steel from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on United States Steel in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United States Steel presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $39.82.

United States Steel Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of X stock traded up $0.85 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $39.12. 4,616,989 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,155,856. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.55. United States Steel Co. has a fifty-two week low of $26.92 and a fifty-two week high of $48.13. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.90. The firm has a market cap of $8.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.86.

United States Steel (NYSE:X - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.38). United States Steel had a return on equity of 4.27% and a net margin of 2.46%. Equities analysts anticipate that United States Steel Co. will post 1.43 EPS for the current year.

United States Steel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. United States Steel's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.42%.

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.