Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $30.41 Million Position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. $STLD

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 168,940 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,973 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Steel Dynamics worth $30,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Steel Dynamics by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $599,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Optas LLC grew its holdings in Steel Dynamics by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,979 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Steel Dynamics by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,708 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $967,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in Steel Dynamics by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 5,555 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $941,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Steel Dynamics by 2.7% during the first quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,396 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Steel Dynamics from $227.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Steel Dynamics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Steel Dynamics from $241.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Steel Dynamics from $293.00 to $291.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.18.

Steel Dynamics Stock Performance

STLD opened at $235.51 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $245.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $209.05. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $34.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.53. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.89 and a 1 year high of $288.74.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The basic materials company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.79 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $5.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.39 billion. Steel Dynamics had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 7.22%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 16.92 EPS for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Steel Dynamics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP James Stanley Anderson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.70, for a total value of $2,687,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 102,837 shares in the company, valued at $27,632,301.90. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth W. Cornew sold 5,000 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.87, for a total value of $1,124,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 31,299 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,038,206.13. The trade was a 13.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 22,125 shares of company stock valued at $5,438,226. Company insiders own 6.60% of the company’s stock.

Steel Dynamics Profile

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.