Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Price Target Raised to $4.60

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $4.40 to $4.60 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. UBS Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 21.85% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank upgraded Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4.60.

Gerdau Price Performance

GGB stock traded down $0.02 during trading on Thursday, hitting $3.78. The stock had a trading volume of 20,903,047 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,222,539. The stock has a market cap of $7.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.89. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.67. Gerdau has a 1-year low of $2.27 and a 1-year high of $4.66.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. Gerdau had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 1.93%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Gerdau will post 0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Gerdau

In related news, Chairman Guilherme Chagas G. Johannpeter sold 85,607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.29, for a total transaction of $281,647.03. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gerdau

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BSW Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Gerdau by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 53,697 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 2,428 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Gerdau by 11.0% in 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 boosted its holdings in Gerdau by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Xponance LLC now owns 20,570 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 2,845 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Gerdau by 22.3% during the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,725 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 3,230 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its position in Gerdau by 7.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 45,679 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $142,000 after acquiring an additional 3,312 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

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.