United States Steel Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:X)

United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 84,572 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 86% compared to the typical daily volume of 45,357 call options.

United States Steel Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE X opened at $38.38 on Thursday. United States Steel has a 52 week low of $26.92 and a 52 week high of $50.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.26 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a fifty day moving average of $37.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.82.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.15. United States Steel had a return on equity of 6.01% and a net margin of 2.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.36 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that United States Steel will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

United States Steel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. United States Steel’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on X shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of United States Steel from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on United States Steel from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of United States Steel from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $40.00 to $42.00 in a report on Monday, September 9th. BNP Paribas raised shares of United States Steel from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on United States Steel in a report on Monday, August 19th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United States Steel has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.80.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in X. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of United States Steel by 4,305.6% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,634,364 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $137,379,000 after purchasing an additional 3,551,870 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of United States Steel in the 3rd quarter valued at about $91,712,000. KGH Ltd grew its position in shares of United States Steel by 68.2% in the 2nd quarter. KGH Ltd now owns 4,255,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $160,839,000 after buying an additional 1,724,670 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of United States Steel during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,620,000. Finally, Murchinson Ltd. boosted its stake in United States Steel by 66.5% in the first quarter. Murchinson Ltd. now owns 2,100,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $85,638,000 after acquiring an additional 838,653 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.92% of the company’s stock.

About United States Steel

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.