Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Sees Large Volume Increase

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Monday . Approximately 6,869,086 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 13% from the previous session’s volume of 7,913,231 shares.The stock last traded at $3.83 and had previously closed at $3.66.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Gerdau from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $5.00 to $6.00 in a research note on Monday, April 15th.

Gerdau Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $4.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.45.

Gerdau shares are set to split before the market opens on Tuesday, April 30th. The 6-5 split was announced on Tuesday, April 30th. The newly issued shares will be distributed to shareholders after the closing bell on Tuesday, April 30th.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter. Gerdau had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 15.05%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 5th were issued a $0.0202 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 4th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Gerdau by 175.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,074 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 5,138 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Gerdau during the first quarter worth $44,000. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the 3rd quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, IPG Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Gerdau during the 4th quarter worth $55,000. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gerdau Company Profile

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. It operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business divisions. The company provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.