Vanguard Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Worthington Steel, Inc. $WS

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS) by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,070,551 shares of the company’s stock after selling 426,879 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 8.01% of Worthington Steel worth $123,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Worthington Steel by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 15,771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 2,038 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Worthington Steel by 89.4% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 50,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,269,000 after purchasing an additional 23,899 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Worthington Steel by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Worthington Steel in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Worthington Steel during the second quarter worth about $298,000. 45.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Worthington Steel from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Worthington Steel from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Zacks Research raised shares of Worthington Steel from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.00.

Worthington Steel Price Performance

WS opened at $39.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.80. Worthington Steel, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.30 and a 1-year high of $49.17. The company has a 50-day moving average of $40.70 and a 200-day moving average of $35.46. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.99 and a beta of 1.62.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.01). Worthington Steel had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The firm had revenue of $871.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $797.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Worthington Steel, Inc. will post 2.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Worthington Steel’s payout ratio is presently 35.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Worthington Steel news, Director Jon J. Bowsher purchased 2,500 shares of Worthington Steel stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $40.15 per share, for a total transaction of $100,375.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 17,893 shares in the company, valued at $718,403.95. This represents a 16.24% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott J. Kelly acquired 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.11 per share, with a total value of $273,770.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $631,900.27. The trade was a 76.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Worthington Steel Profile

Worthington Steel (NYSE: WS) is a leading North American steel processor specializing in the production of flat-rolled, coated and painted sheet and coil products. Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Worthington Industries, the company serves a broad range of industries, including construction, automotive, appliance, energy and agricultural equipment. Its core business activities encompass the processing, finishing and distribution of carbon and advanced high-strength steels, aluminum and stainless products to manufacturers across the continent.

The company’s product portfolio includes hot-dip galvanizing, galvannealed, aluminized and pre-painted steel products, as well as cold-rolled and hot-rolled coil.