Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Buys 4,297 Shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) by 13.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,297 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Steel Dynamics were worth $5,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Steel Dynamics by 3.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,300,813 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $938,196,000 after purchasing an additional 230,582 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the second quarter worth about $339,769,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 12.1% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,340,480 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $322,518,000 after buying an additional 252,108 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 15.5% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,936,077 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $269,947,000 after buying an additional 260,104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,410,983 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $180,620,000 after buying an additional 5,317 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

Shares of Steel Dynamics stock opened at $163.95 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 3.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $184.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $165.38. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a one year low of $103.17 and a one year high of $208.47.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.62 billion. Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 13.56% and a net margin of 6.52%.Steel Dynamics’s quarterly revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.36 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This is an increase from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Steel Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 24.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on STLD. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Steel Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $210.00 to $196.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics from $194.00 to $192.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Steel Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.44.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a U.S.-based, diversified steel producer and metals recycler that operates an integrated network of mini-mills, finishing lines and fabrication facilities. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company manufactures a broad range of steel products and provides downstream processing, coating and fabrication services to industrial customers. Its operations combine steelmaking using electric-arc furnaces with extensive metals recycling capabilities, allowing Steel Dynamics to convert scrap ferrous and nonferrous materials into finished steel products.

The company’s product portfolio includes flat-rolled steel (coiled and sheet products), structural steel and fabricated components, along with coated and painted steel used in consumer, industrial and construction applications.