United States Steel (NYSE:X) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $39.00, but opened at $40.06. United States Steel shares last traded at $40.12, with a volume of 5,177,370 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on X. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of United States Steel from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of United States Steel in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of United States Steel from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of United States Steel from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United States Steel presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.70.

United States Steel Trading Up 4.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.68.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.38). United States Steel had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 4.27%. Research analysts anticipate that United States Steel Co. will post 1.43 EPS for the current year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. United States Steel’s payout ratio is 13.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United States Steel

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United States Steel during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $554,000. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its stake in shares of United States Steel by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,051 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. purchased a new position in shares of United States Steel during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,292,000. Wexford Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of United States Steel by 193.7% during the fourth quarter. Wexford Capital LP now owns 443,951 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,090,000 after buying an additional 292,811 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of United States Steel by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,211 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 1,493 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.92% of the company’s stock.

United States Steel Company Profile

United States Steel Corporation produces and sells flat-rolled and tubular steel products primarily in North America and Europe. The company operates through North American Flat-Rolled (Flat-Rolled), Mini Mill, U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular) segments. The Flat-Rolled segment offers slabs, strip mill plates, sheets, and tin mill products, as well as iron ore and coke.