United States Steel’s (X) Hold Rating Reaffirmed at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reiterated their hold rating on shares of United States Steel (NYSE:X) in a research note released on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a $55.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $50.00.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on X. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on United States Steel from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 target price (down previously from $43.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of United States Steel in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Steel has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.37.

United States Steel Stock Up 1.7%

NYSE:X opened at $52.92 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. United States Steel has a twelve month low of $26.92 and a twelve month high of $54.00. The company has a market cap of $11.98 billion, a PE ratio of 35.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.82. The company’s 50 day moving average is $42.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.81.

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

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.38%. United States Steel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.97%.

Institutional Trading of United States Steel

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of X. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United States Steel by 64.0% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 710 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in United States Steel by 643.8% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 595 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in United States Steel during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. HM Payson & Co. grew its stake in United States Steel by 57.2% during the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 706 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in United States Steel in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.