KBC Group NV Decreases Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD)

KBC Group NV cut its position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 662,741 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 40,531 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.44% of Steel Dynamics worth $75,599,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 59.4% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,295 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $686,000 after buying an additional 1,973 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new position in Steel Dynamics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,377,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 93,763 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,142,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 24.3% during the 2nd quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 2,079 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviso Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Steel Dynamics in the second quarter valued at approximately $340,000. 82.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STLD opened at $122.35 on Monday. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.60 and a 12 month high of $155.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.63 billion, a PE ratio of 12.48 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $127.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.38.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.33). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 17.25%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.61 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $149.00 price objective (up previously from $145.00) on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $125.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Steel Dynamics from $134.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Richard A. Poinsatte sold 2,000 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.75, for a total value of $277,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,101 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,927,763.75. The trade was a 8.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Miguel Alvarez sold 6,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.00, for a total transaction of $950,950.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 116,949 shares in the company, valued at $16,723,707. The trade was a 5.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

About Steel Dynamics

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.