Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $47.41 and last traded at $47.74, with a volume of 658747 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.89.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CMC. UBS Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $56.00 target price (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Commercial Metals in a report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Commercial Metals in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Commercial Metals from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Wolfe Research downgraded Commercial Metals from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Commercial Metals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.17.

Commercial Metals Stock Down 2.5 %

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $56.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.97. The stock has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a PE ratio of 11.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.78. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. Commercial Metals had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Commercial Metals will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Commercial Metals Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 16th. Commercial Metals’s payout ratio is 17.39%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew 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 buying an additional 17,931 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Commercial Metals by 6.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,081,153 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $59,420,000 after buying an additional 66,092 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc raised its stake in shares of Commercial Metals by 108.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 18,103 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $995,000 after acquiring an additional 9,400 shares during the period. Seizert Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 32.5% in the 3rd quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 75,873 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,170,000 after acquiring an additional 18,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,462,317 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $80,369,000 after acquiring an additional 18,262 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.