Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Short Interest Up 20.0% in February

Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,434,070 shares, a growth of 20.0% from the January 29th total of 3,693,970 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,560,670 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 3.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Approximately 3.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,560,670 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at about $586,702,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Steel Dynamics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $564,590,000. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 147.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,793,630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $303,970,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070,042 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the second quarter worth $48,746,000. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 28.0% in the fourth quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,629,401 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $276,102,000 after purchasing an additional 356,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on STLD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Steel Dynamics from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Steel Dynamics currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $184.22.

Steel Dynamics Price Performance

STLD stock opened at $189.98 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 3.06, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $183.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $161.70. Steel Dynamics has a 12-month low of $103.17 and a 12-month high of $208.47.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.10. Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 13.56% and a net margin of 6.52%.The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.36 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Steel Dynamics will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a positive change from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.97%.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc is a U.S.-based, diversified steel producer and metals recycler that operates an integrated network of mini-mills, finishing lines and fabrication facilities. Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company manufactures a broad range of steel products and provides downstream processing, coating and fabrication services to industrial customers. Its operations combine steelmaking using electric-arc furnaces with extensive metals recycling capabilities, allowing Steel Dynamics to convert scrap ferrous and nonferrous materials into finished steel products.

The company’s product portfolio includes flat-rolled steel (coiled and sheet products), structural steel and fabricated components, along with coated and painted steel used in consumer, industrial and construction applications.