Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Raises Stake in Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) by 19.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 549,441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 87,961 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Gerdau were worth $1,813,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new position in Gerdau during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the 1st quarter valued at about $53,000. KCM Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gerdau during the 1st quarter valued at about $54,000. IPG Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Gerdau in the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Abacus Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the 1st quarter worth approximately $59,000. 1.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gerdau Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GGB traded up $0.12 during trading on Monday, hitting $3.27. The stock had a trading volume of 3,985,706 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,930,325. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 1.76. Gerdau S.A. has a 12-month low of $2.92 and a 12-month high of $4.46.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be paid a $0.055 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. This is a positive change from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.73%. Gerdau’s payout ratio is currently 13.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Bank of America raised Gerdau from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $4.50 to $5.00 in a research report on Friday, May 24th.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.