BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Ryerson (NYSE:RYI) Stock

Ryerson (NYSE:RYI) had its price target upped by BMO Capital Markets from $23.00 to $25.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a market perform rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Ryerson Stock Performance

NYSE RYI opened at $25.77 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Ryerson has a 1 year low of $17.18 and a 1 year high of $34.65. The company has a market capitalization of $820.80 million, a PE ratio of -99.12 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a fifty day moving average of $20.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.30.

Ryerson (NYSE:RYI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by $0.34. Ryerson had a negative net margin of 0.19% and a negative return on equity of 0.70%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. As a group, analysts expect that Ryerson will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ryerson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. Ryerson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -288.46%.

Insider Transactions at Ryerson

In other news, CFO James J. Claussen sold 6,017 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.30, for a total transaction of $152,230.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 58,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,486,956.90. This represents a 9.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ryerson

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ryerson in the fourth quarter valued at about $54,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Ryerson by 488.2% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,688 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 3,061 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Ryerson in the third quarter valued at about $108,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in Ryerson by 159.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,649 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 4,704 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Ryerson in the third quarter valued at about $202,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.81% of the company’s stock.

Ryerson Company Profile

Ryerson Holding Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, processes and distributes industrial metals in the United States and internationally. It offers a line of products in carbon steel, stainless steel, alloy steels, and aluminum, as well as nickel and red metals in various shapes and forms, including coils, sheets, rounds, hexagons, square and flat bars, plates, structural, and tubing.