Short Interest in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) Expands By 254.6%

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) was the target of a large increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totaling 29,813,057 shares, an increase of 254.6% from the May 31st total of 8,407,063 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 18,828,183 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GGB. 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 report on Thursday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $5.25 price target (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gerdau has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Mauricio Metz sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.85, for a total value of $33,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,536 shares in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Clemir Uhlein sold 38,276 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.51, for a total value of $172,624.76. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 794,184 shares of company stock worth $3,697,276. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Gerdau

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position 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 worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 3,931 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Gerdau by 95.3% during 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 period. Greenspring Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gerdau Stock Up 0.4%

GGB stock opened at $4.16 on Friday. Gerdau has a fifty-two week low of $2.83 and a fifty-two week high of $4.98. The business’s 50-day moving average is $4.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 2.76. The company has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.97 and a beta of 1.48.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.05). The firm 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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Gerdau will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.0361 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This is a positive change from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Gerdau’s payout ratio is 75.00%.

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.