Short Interest in Olympic Steel, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZEUS) Increases By 71.8%

Olympic Steel, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZEUS) was the target of a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 463,700 shares, a growth of 71.8% from the August 15th total of 269,900 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 109,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.2 days. Approximately 4.7% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Olympic Steel Stock Up 0.5 %

ZEUS stock opened at $37.61 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $42.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.49. The company has a current ratio of 3.77, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $418.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 1.48. Olympic Steel has a 52 week low of $34.81 and a 52 week high of $73.49.

Olympic Steel (NASDAQ:ZEUS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Olympic Steel had a return on equity of 4.98% and a net margin of 1.74%. The company had revenue of $526.25 million for the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS.

Olympic Steel Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Olympic Steel’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Olympic Steel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Institutional Trading of Olympic Steel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in Olympic Steel by 0.6% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,710 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,035,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Olympic Steel by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 6,134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Olympic Steel by 2.1% during the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 14,472 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $649,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. ClariVest Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Olympic Steel by 2.9% during the second quarter. ClariVest Asset Management LLC now owns 13,921 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $624,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Olympic Steel by 5.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,903 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $702,000 after purchasing an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. 87.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Olympic Steel Company Profile

Olympic Steel, Inc processes, distributes, and stores metal products primarily in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates in three segments: Carbon Flat Products; Specialty Metals Flat Products; and Tubular and Pipe Products. The company offers stainless steel and aluminum coil and sheet products, angles, rounds, and flat bars; alloy, heat treated, and abrasion resistant coils, sheets and plates; coated metals, including galvanized, galvannealed, electro galvanized, advanced high strength steels, aluminized, and automotive grades of steel; commercial quality, advanced high strength steel, drawing steel, and automotive grades cold rolled steel coil and sheet products; hot rolled carbon comprising hot rolled coil, pickled and oiled sheet and plate steel products, automotive grades, advanced high strength steels, and high strength low alloys; tube, pipe, and bar products, including round, square, and rectangular mechanical and structural tubing; hydraulic and stainless tubing; boiler tubing; carbon, stainless, and aluminum pipes; valves and fittings; and tin mill products, such as electrolytic tinplate, electrolytic chromium coated steel, and black plates.