2,949,293 Shares in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) Purchased by Norges Bank

Norges Bank acquired a new position in Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,949,293 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $336,426,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Steel Dynamics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Steel Dynamics by 532.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Avalon Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Steel Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 82.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Steel Dynamics Trading Down 3.1 %

STLD opened at $123.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $128.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.66. The company has a market capitalization of $18.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.34. Steel Dynamics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.60 and a 52 week high of $155.56.

Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.33). Steel Dynamics had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 17.32%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.61 EPS. Analysts forecast that Steel Dynamics, Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Steel Dynamics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. This is a positive change from Steel Dynamics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Steel Dynamics’s payout ratio is currently 20.41%.

Steel Dynamics declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, February 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to purchase up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Steel Dynamics from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Steel Dynamics in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Steel Dynamics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Steel Dynamics from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Steel Dynamics from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.56.

Insider Transactions at Steel Dynamics

In other Steel Dynamics news, SVP Glenn Pushis sold 23,649 shares of Steel Dynamics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.67, for a total transaction of $3,184,810.83. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 122,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,448,593.80. The trade was a 16.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Steel Dynamics Profile

Steel Dynamics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer and metal recycler in the United States. The Steel Operations segment offers hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated steel products; parallel flange beams and channel sections, flat bars, large unequal leg angles, and reinforcing steel bars, as well as standard strength carbon, intermediate alloy hardness, and premium grade rail products; engineered special-bar-quality products, merchant-bar-quality products, and other engineered round steel bars; channels, angles, flats, merchant rounds, and reinforcing steel bars; and specialty shapes and light structural steel products.