Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $60.33.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Commercial Metals from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Commercial Metals in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut shares of Commercial Metals from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Commercial Metals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Commercial Metals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commercial Metals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in Commercial Metals by 60.7% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 707 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. South Plains Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Commercial Metals during the 4th quarter valued at $73,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Commercial Metals by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,646 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Commercial Metals Price Performance

Shares of CMC opened at $46.15 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.65. Commercial Metals has a 52-week low of $42.62 and a 52-week high of $64.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a PE ratio of 41.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.17.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.73 billion. Commercial Metals had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 1.70%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Commercial Metals will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 120.00%.

About Commercial Metals

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers.