Renaissance Technologies LLC Increases Stock Position in Gerdau S.A. $GGB

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) by 76.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,936,524 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,725,200 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Gerdau were worth $39,481,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 68.9% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,634 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 3,931 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Gerdau by 95.3% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 5,216 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau in the third quarter worth $34,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Greenspring Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Chia Yuan Wang sold 30,935 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.49, for a total transaction of $138,898.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cesar Obino Da Rosa Peres sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8 shares in the company, valued at $36.80. This represents a 99.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 555,789 shares of company stock valued at $2,679,327 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Gerdau Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Gerdau stock opened at $4.83 on Tuesday. Gerdau S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $2.85 and a fifty-two week high of $4.98. The business’s fifty day moving average is $4.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $9.65 billion, a PE ratio of 30.16 and a beta of 1.50.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.36 billion. Gerdau had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 6.76%. Analysts anticipate that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Gerdau from $5.50 to $6.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $5.25 price target (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Gerdau from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $4.60 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5.28.

Gerdau 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.