Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Hits New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $4.53 and last traded at $4.5250, with a volume of 4312469 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on GGB shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $4.60 price objective (up previously from $4.00) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research raised Gerdau from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.60.

Gerdau Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.70 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.40. The company has a market cap of $8.78 billion, a PE ratio of 16.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.47.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 5.92% and a net margin of 4.38%. Sell-side analysts expect that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th were issued a $0.0521 dividend. This is a positive change from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.21 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.37%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 68.9% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,634 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Gerdau in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the third quarter worth $32,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Gerdau by 95.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 5,216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Gerdau during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA is a Brazilian-based steel producer engaged in the manufacture and distribution of long steel products for the construction, industrial and agricultural sectors. Established in 1901, the company operates an integrated network of electric-arc furnaces and rolling mills, producing reinforcement bars, wire rod, merchant bars and structural shapes. Gerdau’s product portfolio also includes specialty long steel, high-yield reinforcement, rail, beams and steel coils, as well as value-added processing services such as cutting, bending and coating.

The company has expanded its footprint beyond Brazil, with significant operations in North America, South America and a presence in select European markets.