Brokerages Set Reliance, Inc. (NYSE:RS) Price Target at $317.25

Reliance, Inc. (NYSE:RS) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $317.25.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Reliance from $284.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Zacks Research upgraded Reliance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Reliance in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Reliance from $340.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Reliance from $345.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 5th.

Reliance Price Performance

RS opened at $353.71 on Wednesday. Reliance has a 1 year low of $250.07 and a 1 year high of $354.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 4.43. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $306.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $291.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.50 billion, a PE ratio of 25.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.92.

Insider Activity at Reliance

In related news, COO Stephen Paul Koch sold 3,066 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.56, for a total transaction of $869,394.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,975,794.76. This represents a 17.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Karla R. Lewis sold 5,809 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.50, for a total value of $1,646,851.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 84,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,933,353.50. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Reliance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Reliance by 6.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,597,755 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $729,528,000 after acquiring an additional 166,214 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Reliance by 27.5% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,247,603 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $631,224,000 after acquiring an additional 484,286 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Reliance by 25.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,708,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $479,870,000 after purchasing an additional 343,598 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Reliance by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,142,551 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $320,863,000 after purchasing an additional 51,894 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Reliance by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 755,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $212,243,000 after purchasing an additional 30,765 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.26% of the company’s stock.

About Reliance

Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co (NYSE: RS) is a leading metals service center company that distributes and processes a broad array of metal products. The company offers cut-to-length, shearing, blanking, sawing, bending, machining and value-added services for carbon and alloy steel, stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium and specialty metal alloys. Its products serve diverse end markets, including energy, infrastructure, general manufacturing, transportation, aerospace and defense.

Founded in 1939 in Los Angeles, Reliance Steel & Aluminum has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.