Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Insider Cesar Obino Da Rosa Peres Sells 8,000 Shares

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) insider Cesar Obino Da Rosa Peres sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.60, for a total value of $36,800.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 8 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36.80. This trade represents a 99.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Gerdau Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Gerdau stock opened at $4.71 on Friday. Gerdau S.A. has a 12-month low of $2.61 and a 12-month high of $4.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.41 billion, a PE ratio of 29.41 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $4.09 and its 200-day moving average is $3.94.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.36 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 2.40%. Equities analysts anticipate that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.0361 dividend. This represents a $0.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Gerdau’s payout ratio is 75.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GGB shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Gerdau from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Friday, March 27th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $5.25 target price (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGB. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 68.9% in the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,634 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Gerdau by 95.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 5,216 shares in the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Gerdau Company Profile

Gerdau SA is a Brazilian-based steel producer engaged in the manufacture and distribution of long steel products for the construction, industrial and agricultural sectors. Established in 1901, the company operates an integrated network of electric-arc furnaces and rolling mills, producing reinforcement bars, wire rod, merchant bars and structural shapes. Gerdau’s product portfolio also includes specialty long steel, high-yield reinforcement, rail, beams and steel coils, as well as value-added processing services such as cutting, bending and coating.

The company has expanded its footprint beyond Brazil, with significant operations in North America, South America and a presence in select European markets.