Chia Yuan Wang Sells 76,700 Shares of Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Stock

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) insider Chia Yuan Wang sold 76,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.49, for a total value of $344,383.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 92,195 shares in the company, valued at $413,955.55. The trade was a 45.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Chia Yuan Wang also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, April 10th, Chia Yuan Wang sold 25,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.21, for a total value of $105,250.00.
• On Wednesday, April 8th, Chia Yuan Wang sold 34,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.00, for a total transaction of $136,000.00.

Gerdau Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE:GGB opened at $4.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.76. The firm has a market cap of $9.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.20 and a beta of 1.51. Gerdau S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $2.48 and a fifty-two week high of $4.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.81.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.05). Gerdau had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 2.40%.The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.36 billion. Analysts predict that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.0361 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GGB shares. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $5.25 price objective (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Wednesday. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Scotiabank raised shares of Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Gerdau from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5.12.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GGB. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Gerdau by 65.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 582,949 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 231,588 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Gerdau by 54.6% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,363,764 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,393,000 after buying an additional 1,541,311 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Gerdau by 821.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,344,175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,657,000 after buying an additional 2,089,675 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Creative Planning increased its holdings in Gerdau by 88.8% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 70,079 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 32,961 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Gerdau Company Profile

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.