Fruth Investment Management Lowers Holdings in Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC)

Fruth Investment Management cut its position in shares of Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,400 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the period. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Commercial Metals were worth $863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 122.8% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,245,535 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $68,455,000 after acquiring an additional 686,519 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC raised its holdings in shares of Commercial Metals by 58.0% in the 3rd quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 1,440,531 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,172,000 after purchasing an additional 528,876 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec purchased a new stake in shares of Commercial Metals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $16,731,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Commercial Metals by 204.3% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 420,808 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $21,570,000 after buying an additional 282,511 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Commercial Metals by 18.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 714,808 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,286,000 after buying an additional 113,156 shares in the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Commercial Metals Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE:CMC opened at $48.67 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $52.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.21. The company has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a PE ratio of 43.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.18. Commercial Metals has a twelve month low of $45.50 and a twelve month high of $64.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) last announced 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 company had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. Commercial Metals had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 1.70%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Commercial Metals will post 3.09 EPS for the current year.

Commercial Metals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 16th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 16th. Commercial Metals’s payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on CMC. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Commercial Metals in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Commercial Metals from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. UBS Group raised shares of Commercial Metals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $56.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Commercial Metals from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.33.

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.