Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Issues Earnings Results

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.01), FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $3.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. Gerdau had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 6.76%.

Gerdau Price Performance

Shares of GGB stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $5.09. The company had a trading volume of 18,818,878 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,822,916. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.85 and a beta of 1.48. Gerdau has a one year low of $2.85 and a one year high of $5.17. 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 stock’s 50-day moving average price is $4.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gerdau news, insider Cesar Obino Da Rosa Peres sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.60, for a total transaction of $36,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8 shares in the company, valued at $36.80. This trade represents a 99.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mauricio Metz sold 7,000 shares of Gerdau stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were 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 directly owned 22,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $109,299.60. This represents a 23.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 493,789 shares of company stock worth $2,389,147 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Gerdau by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 26,397 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 2,607 shares during the last quarter. Xponance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gerdau by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Xponance LLC now owns 20,570 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 2,845 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Gerdau by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 285,259 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 4,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Gerdau by 95.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 5,216 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GGB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Gerdau from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $5.25 price target (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5.28.

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.