James Francis Dinning Sells 3,000 Shares of Russel Metals (TSE:RUS) Stock

Russel Metals Inc. (TSE:RUS) Director James Francis Dinning sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$80.00, for a total value of C$240,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,250 shares in the company, valued at C$1,300,000. This trade represents a 15.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock.

James Francis Dinning also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, May 29th, James Francis Dinning sold 2,500 shares of Russel Metals stock. The shares were sold at an average price of C$62.10, for a total transaction of C$155,250.00.
• On Tuesday, May 26th, James Francis Dinning sold 2,500 shares of Russel Metals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of C$60.19, for a total transaction of C$150,475.00.

Russel Metals Stock Performance

Shares of RUS stock opened at C$79.73 on Friday. Russel Metals Inc. has a 12 month low of C$39.09 and a 12 month high of C$83.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 27.88, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of C$4.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day moving average price is C$66.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$56.76.

Russel Metals (TSE:RUS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported C$1.63 earnings per share for the quarter. Russel Metals had a return on equity of 13.09% and a net margin of 4.04%.The company had revenue of C$1.66 billion during the quarter.

Russel Metals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Russel Metals’s payout ratio is currently 44.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Russel Metals from C$64.00 to C$85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Russel Metals from C$76.00 to C$89.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. National Bank Financial raised their price objective on shares of Russel Metals from C$57.00 to C$75.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Russel Metals from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from C$70.00 to C$82.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Russel Metals from C$51.00 to C$56.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of C$76.89.

Key Stories Impacting Russel Metals

Here are the key news stories impacting Russel Metals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see further upside: TD Securities raised its price target to C$94 and maintained a Buy rating, while Scotiabank lifted its target to C$89. Stifel Nicolaus also set an C$85 target, supporting the recent bullish outlook. TD analyst expects Russel Metals stock to rise Scotiabank raises Russel Metals price target
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend announced: Russel Metals declared a C$0.44-per-share quarterly dividend, equivalent to C$1.76 annually and a yield of approximately 2.2%. The dividend may appeal to income-focused investors and signals continued shareholder returns. The ex-dividend date is August 28, with payment scheduled for September 15 to investors of record.
• Neutral Sentiment: One director made a small purchase: Director Brian Robie Hedges bought 1,000 shares at an average C$80.48, indicating some confidence near the current trading range. However, the purchase followed a much larger sale by the same director. Russel Metals director buys shares
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling raises caution: Hedges sold 25,000 shares for approximately C$2.04 million on August 11, while Director James Francis Dinning sold another 3,000 shares for C$240,000 on August 13. The combined sales substantially exceed the recent purchase and may weigh on sentiment, particularly with the stock near its 52-week high. Russel Metals insider transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation risk remains: Raymond James downgraded the stock to Hold, and the reported consensus target of C$76.89 is below recent trading levels. This suggests the market may already be pricing in much of the expected improvement.

About Russel Metals

Russel Metals is one of the largest metals distribution companies in North America with a growing focus on value-added processing. It carries on business in three segments: metals service centers, energy field stores and steel distributors. Its network of metals service centers carries an extensive line of metal products in a wide range of sizes, shapes and specifications, including carbon hot rolled and cold finished steel, pipe and tubular products, stainless steel, aluminum and other non-ferrous specialty metals.