Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for United States Steel (NYSE:X) Stock Price

United States Steel (NYSE:X) had its target price hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $35.00 to $38.00 in a research note published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on X. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Bank of America began coverage on United States Steel in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Steel currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.22.

United States Steel Trading Down 2.6 %

X opened at $42.90 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.71 billion, a PE ratio of 28.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.91. United States Steel has a fifty-two week low of $26.92 and a fifty-two week high of $46.18. The company’s 50-day moving average is $41.10 and its 200 day moving average is $38.34.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.39) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. United States Steel had a return on equity of 4.27% and a net margin of 2.46%. United States Steel’s revenue was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that United States Steel will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. United States Steel’s payout ratio is 68.97%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United States Steel

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of X. Norges Bank purchased a new position in United States Steel in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $130,731,000. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of United States Steel in the fourth quarter worth $50,795,000. NWI Management LP purchased a new position in shares of United States Steel in the fourth quarter valued at $48,946,000. Duquesne Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of United States Steel by 142.8% during the 4th quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC now owns 1,610,040 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $54,725,000 after purchasing an additional 946,950 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in United States Steel by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,291,906 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $315,790,000 after purchasing an additional 929,762 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.