Bailard Inc. Sells 14,044 Shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC)

Bailard Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) by 77.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 14,044 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Commercial Metals were worth $205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Commercial Metals during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Commercial Metals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in Commercial Metals during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Commercial Metals in the fourth quarter worth $74,000. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Commercial Metals Stock Performance

Shares of CMC opened at $54.89 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 4.19, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Commercial Metals has a 12-month low of $39.85 and a 12-month high of $59.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $55.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.42.

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

Commercial Metals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from Commercial Metals’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Commercial Metals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Commercial Metals in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Commercial Metals from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Commercial Metals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Barbara Smith sold 23,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.65, for a total transaction of $1,219,921.35. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 72,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,739,460. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 119,489 shares of company stock valued at $6,371,781 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

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.