158,259 Shares in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) Purchased by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 158,259 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $456,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in Gerdau during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Zhang Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Gerdau in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group bought a new position in Gerdau during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Gerdau in a research report on Monday. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Gerdau in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock.

Gerdau Stock Performance

Shares of GGB opened at $2.51 on Thursday. Gerdau S.A. has a 52-week low of $2.27 and a 52-week high of $4.04. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $2.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 1.37.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.06. Gerdau had a net margin of 7.03% and a return on equity of 7.74%. The firm had revenue of $2.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. Research analysts forecast that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gerdau Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.0175 dividend. This represents a $0.07 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Gerdau’s payout ratio is currently 13.95%.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.