Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Commercial Metals in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a buy rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Commercial Metals from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd.

Commercial Metals Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE:CMC opened at $57.22 on Wednesday. Commercial Metals has a 1 year low of $39.85 and a 1 year high of $59.81. The company has a current ratio of 4.19, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $6.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.81.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.05). Commercial Metals had a net margin of 8.09% and a return on equity of 17.72%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Commercial Metals will post 5.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Commercial Metals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Commercial Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Barbara Smith sold 35,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.88, for a total transaction of $2,066,547.52. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 36,196 shares in the company, valued at $2,095,024.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Commercial Metals news, Chairman Barbara Smith sold 35,704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.88, for a total value of $2,066,547.52. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 36,196 shares in the company, valued at $2,095,024.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Lindsay L. Sloan sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.52, for a total value of $30,912.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $635,653.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 320,089 shares of company stock worth $16,383,553. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Commercial Metals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Green Alpha Advisors LLC raised its stake in Commercial Metals by 2.0% in the first quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 23,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Adirondack Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 3,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $173,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,641,427 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $632,577,000 after purchasing an additional 191,345 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Commercial Metals by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 310,681 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,546,000 after purchasing an additional 13,073 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.