Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) Insider Chia Yuan Wang Sells 20,000 Shares

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) insider Chia Yuan Wang sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.54, for a total transaction of $90,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 72,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $327,765.30. This trade represents a 21.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Chia Yuan Wang also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, April 28th, Chia Yuan Wang sold 76,700 shares of Gerdau stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.49, for a total transaction of $344,383.00.
• On Friday, April 10th, Chia Yuan Wang sold 25,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.21, for a total transaction of $105,250.00.
• On Wednesday, April 8th, Chia Yuan Wang sold 34,000 shares of Gerdau stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.00, for a total transaction of $136,000.00.

Gerdau Price Performance

Gerdau stock opened at $4.51 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.16 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 2.76. Gerdau S.A. has a 1 year low of $2.48 and a 1 year high of $4.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.82.

Gerdau (NYSE:GGB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The basic materials company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.36 billion. Gerdau had a net margin of 2.40% and a return on equity of 6.76%. Sell-side analysts predict that Gerdau S.A. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.0361 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Gerdau’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently 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 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Gerdau from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $5.25 price objective (up from $4.60) on shares of Gerdau in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Gerdau from $5.00 to $5.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gerdau in a report on Friday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gerdau has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $5.12.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gerdau

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GGB. BSW Wealth Partners increased its holdings in Gerdau by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 53,697 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 2,428 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Gerdau by 11.0% during 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 in the last quarter. Xponance LLC lifted its stake 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. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 11.9% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 30,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 3,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 22.3% in 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 last quarter. 1.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.