American Century Companies Inc. Acquires 12,909 Shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC)

American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 852,994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,909 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.75% of Commercial Metals worth $42,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CMC. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in Commercial Metals by 122.8% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,245,535 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $68,455,000 after purchasing an additional 686,519 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec purchased a new stake in Commercial Metals during the 3rd quarter valued at $16,731,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,422,427 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $120,152,000 after buying an additional 245,468 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,055,150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $201,178,000 after buying an additional 243,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals in the fourth quarter worth $11,052,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Commercial Metals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CMC opened at $48.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 43.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.17. Commercial Metals has a 1 year low of $42.62 and a 1 year high of $64.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $48.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.76 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Commercial Metals will post 3.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 120.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on CMC. UBS Group lowered their target price on Commercial Metals from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Commercial Metals in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Commercial Metals from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Commercial Metals from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.33.

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.