Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Shares Bought by Wasatch Advisors LP

Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) by 28.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 752,108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 165,326 shares during the quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP owned approximately 0.65% of Commercial Metals worth $37,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CMC. Lingohr Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals in the fourth quarter valued at about $798,000. CoreCommodity Management LLC lifted its stake in Commercial Metals by 60.5% in the 4th quarter. CoreCommodity Management LLC now owns 34,766 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,740,000 after buying an additional 13,110 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC grew its holdings in Commercial Metals by 165.7% during the 4th quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 49,486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,476,000 after buying an additional 30,862 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Commercial Metals by 59.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 617,188 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,884,000 after buying an additional 229,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the fourth quarter worth $7,334,000. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Barbara Smith sold 35,704 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.88, for a total value of $2,066,547.52. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 36,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,095,024.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Commercial Metals Trading Down 2.0 %

Commercial Metals stock traded down $1.05 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $51.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 23,011 shares, compared to its average volume of 892,796. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $55.92 and its 200 day moving average is $52.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a current ratio of 4.19. Commercial Metals has a 1-year low of $39.85 and a 1-year high of $59.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.04 and a beta of 1.27.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.05). Commercial Metals had a net margin of 8.09% and a return on equity of 17.72%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Commercial Metals will post 5.34 EPS for the current year.

Commercial Metals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Commercial Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Commercial Metals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd.

Commercial Metals Company Profile

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.