Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Stock Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $4.19 and traded as high as $4.77. Gerdau shares last traded at $4.7240, with a volume of 9,829,916 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GGB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Gerdau from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Itau BBA Securities upgraded Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Scotiabank raised Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $5.25 price objective (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5.28.

Gerdau Trading Up 0.1%

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $4.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.76 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market cap of $9.45 billion, a PE ratio of 29.53 and a beta of 1.50.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). Gerdau had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 6.76%. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.36 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.0361 per share. This represents a $0.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This is a boost from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Mauricio Metz sold 7,000 shares of Gerdau stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.85, for a total transaction of $33,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 22,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $109,299.60. The trade was a 23.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cesar Obino Da Rosa Peres sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 8 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36.80. This represents a 99.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 671,765 shares of company stock valued at $3,200,865. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 68.9% during the 2nd 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 period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 95.3% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 5,216 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the third quarter worth $34,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Greenspring Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.