Zacks Investment Research cut shares of Olympic Steel, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZEUS) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday.
According to Zacks, “OLYMPIC STEEL INC. is a specialized steel service center that processes and distributes flat- rolled carbon, stainless and tubular steel products. Co. operates as an intermediary between steel producers and manufacturers that require processed steel for their operations. Co. purchases flat-rolled steel typically from steel producers and responds to its customers’ needs by processing steel to customer specifications and by providing critical inventory and just-in-time delivery services. “
Separately, Jefferies Group LLC reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Olympic Steel in a research report on Friday, July 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Olympic Steel presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $21.75.
Shares of Olympic Steel (NASDAQ:ZEUS) opened at 16.73 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $17.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.98 and a beta of 1.73. Olympic Steel has a one year low of $15.83 and a one year high of $28.67.
Olympic Steel (NASDAQ:ZEUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 3rd. The basic materials company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $356.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $365 million. Olympic Steel had a net margin of 0.71% and a return on equity of 2.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Olympic Steel will post $1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
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The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 1st will be issued a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 30th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Olympic Steel’s payout ratio is 10.67%.
In other news, CFO Richard T. Marabito bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $17.42 per share, with a total value of $34,840.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 30,614 shares in the company, valued at $533,295.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 18.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ZEUS. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Olympic Steel during the second quarter worth approximately $280,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Olympic Steel by 12.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 8,349 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 934 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Olympic Steel by 5.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 234,772 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,574,000 after buying an additional 12,824 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Olympic Steel by 26.8% in the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 20,517 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 4,334 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Olympic Steel during the second quarter worth approximately $1,266,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.28% of the company’s stock.
Olympic Steel Company Profile
Olympic Steel, Inc is a metals service center. The Company provides metals processing and distribution services for a range of customers. The Company operates through three segments: carbon flat products, specialty metals flat products, and tubular and pipe products. The Company’s carbon flat products segment’s focus is on the direct sale and distribution of large volumes of processed carbon and coated flat-rolled sheet, coil and plate products and fabricated parts.
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