Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,010,000 shares, a drop of 37.3% from the September 15th total of 6,400,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 7,020,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Gerdau Stock Performance

NYSE GGB traded down $0.04 on Monday, hitting $3.26. 2,105,187 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,901,436. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $3.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.38. Gerdau has a 52-week low of $2.92 and a 52-week high of $4.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 1.74.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.02. Gerdau had a net margin of 7.88% and a return on equity of 8.43%. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. Equities analysts expect that Gerdau will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a $0.055 dividend. This represents a $0.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.75%. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. Gerdau’s payout ratio is presently 13.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Insight 2811 Inc. bought a new stake in Gerdau in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. bought a new position in Gerdau during the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Prosperity Consulting Group LLC purchased a new position in Gerdau during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Institutional investors own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Gerdau Company Profile

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.