United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $43.80.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Glj Research downgraded shares of United States Steel from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on United States Steel from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on United States Steel from $39.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $55.00 price target (up from $50.00) on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th.

United States Steel Price Performance

Shares of X opened at $54.97 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $12.45 billion, a PE ratio of 189.56, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $47.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.45. United States Steel has a twelve month low of $26.92 and a twelve month high of $54.91.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported ($0.39) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.04). United States Steel had a net margin of 0.64% and a return on equity of 1.69%. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. United States Steel’s quarterly revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that United States Steel will post 1.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United States Steel Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. United States Steel’s payout ratio is 68.97%.

Institutional Trading of United States Steel

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in United States Steel by 643.8% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 595 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. grew its stake in shares of United States Steel by 57.2% during the first quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 706 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of United States Steel by 64.0% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 710 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of United States Steel during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in United States Steel by 45.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 911 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. 81.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About United States Steel

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.