Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $4.23 and last traded at $4.1950, with a volume of 4051696 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $4.16.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Gerdau Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $8.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.01). Gerdau had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 5.92%. The business had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 12th. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of Gerdau by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 31,046,243 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $96,243,000 after purchasing an additional 581,958 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 22.4% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,894,871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,274,000 after buying an additional 2,910,482 shares during the period. Causeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Gerdau by 169.2% during the third quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 7,189,270 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $22,287,000 after buying an additional 4,519,092 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in Gerdau during the second quarter worth about $17,440,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. raised its position in Gerdau by 47.6% in the third quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 5,435,331 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $16,850,000 after acquiring an additional 1,752,282 shares in the last quarter. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.