Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Stock Price Breaks Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $4.50 and traded as high as $5.04. Gerdau shares last traded at $5.0160, with a volume of 19,415,021 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.10 price target (up from $5.70) on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Bank of America lowered Gerdau from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.10 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Gerdau from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Gerdau to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Itau BBA Securities lowered shares of Gerdau from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.57.

Gerdau Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.81 and a beta of 1.48. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $4.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.15. The company had revenue of $3.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 7.97% and a net margin of 3.37%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were issued a $0.0448 dividend. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.0361. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Gerdau’s payout ratio is 65.22%.

Insider Activity at Gerdau

In related news, EVP Rafael Lopes sold 51,800 shares of Gerdau stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.09, for a total value of $263,662.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 83,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $424,500.91. The trade was a 38.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rafael Japur sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.10, for a total value of $51,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 86,967 shares in the company, valued at $443,531.70. This trade represents a 10.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 147,407 shares of company stock worth $737,561. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greenspring Advisors LLC bought a new position in Gerdau during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of Gerdau during the first quarter valued at about $43,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau in the first quarter worth about $45,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau in the first quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gerdau by 57.6% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,243 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 4,842 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Gerdau Company Profile

Gerdau SA is a Brazilian steel producer and one of the major suppliers of long steel in the Americas. The company manufactures products including rebar, wire rod, structural shapes, merchant bars and other steel products used in construction, infrastructure, industrial manufacturing and agricultural equipment.

Gerdau also produces special steel for the automotive, machinery and other industrial sectors, as well as flat steel products through its operations in Brazil. Its business includes steel recycling, with a significant portion of its production based on ferrous scrap, and the company operates a network of steel mills, fabrication facilities and distribution centers.

Founded in Brazil in 1901, Gerdau serves customers across Brazil, North America and South America.