National Steel (NYSE:SID) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $1.02, but opened at $1.06. National Steel shares last traded at $1.0650, with a volume of 178,219 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SID. Wall Street Zen cut shares of National Steel from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 22nd. Zacks Research cut shares of National Steel from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of National Steel in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat, National Steel currently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $1.40.

National Steel Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $0.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.57.

National Steel (NYSE:SID) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The basic materials company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. National Steel had a negative net margin of 5.26% and a negative return on equity of 14.90%. Equities research analysts predict that National Steel Company will post 0.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National Steel

An institutional investor recently raised its position in National Steel stock. HRT Financial LP increased its position in shares of National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) by 175.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 564,262 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 359,335 shares during the period. HRT Financial LP’s holdings in National Steel were worth $902,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About National Steel

Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional operates as an integrated steel producer in Brazil and Latin America. It operates through five segments: Steel Industry, Mining, Logistics, Energy, and Cement. The company offers flat steel products, such as hot and cold rolled, galvanized, galvalume, pre-painted, and metal sheets products; coil, sheets, and derivatives; tiles and derivatives, pipes, and profiles; long steel products; steel packaging solutions for the food industry; chemical packaging solution; and carbochemical products.