Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Downgraded to Neutral Rating by BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas lowered shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets set a $62.00 target price on Commercial Metals and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Commercial Metals from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating and set a $56.00 price objective (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Commercial Metals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.67.

Commercial Metals Stock Performance

NYSE:CMC opened at $48.89 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $57.06 and its 200 day moving average is $54.97. The firm has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a current ratio of 3.94. Commercial Metals has a 52-week low of $47.42 and a 52-week high of $64.53.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The basic materials company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.07 billion. Commercial Metals had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 6.13%. Research analysts predict that Commercial Metals will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 16th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 16th. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.39%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,714,116 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $94,208,000 after acquiring an additional 17,931 shares during the last quarter. Vestcor Inc lifted its position in Commercial Metals by 108.0% in the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 18,103 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $995,000 after purchasing an additional 9,400 shares during the last quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 32.5% during the third quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 75,873 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,170,000 after purchasing an additional 18,600 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,462,317 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $80,369,000 after purchasing an additional 18,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 87.8% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 36,392 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,000,000 after buying an additional 17,010 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.