Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Monday, April 20th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $46.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Worthington Steel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Worthington Steel presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.00.

Worthington Steel Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of Worthington Steel stock opened at $41.18 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.48. Worthington Steel has a one year low of $24.23 and a one year high of $49.17. The company has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.22 and a beta of 2.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $35.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.95.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 26th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.20). Worthington Steel had a return on equity of 10.12% and a net margin of 3.64%.The company had revenue of $769.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $882.95 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.35 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Worthington Steel will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Worthington Steel Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. Worthington Steel’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.65%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Worthington Steel

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Worthington Steel by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 530,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,351,000 after purchasing an additional 16,653 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Worthington Steel by 51.3% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 609,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,532,000 after purchasing an additional 206,778 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,674,000. Keybank National Association OH acquired a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the 4th quarter worth about $7,163,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Worthington Steel by 44.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 191,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,825,000 after purchasing an additional 58,864 shares during the last quarter. 45.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Worthington Steel

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.