National Steel Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:SID)

National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders bought 2,585 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 340% compared to the average daily volume of 588 call options.

National Steel Trading Down 4.9%

SID stock traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $1.07. The stock had a trading volume of 2,258,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,827,083. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1.51. National Steel has a 1-year low of $1.07 and a 1-year high of $2.20. The firm has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.44 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60.

National Steel (NYSE:SID) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The basic materials company reported ($0.08) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. National Steel had a negative net margin of 3.92% and a negative return on equity of 10.69%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that National Steel will post 0.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Zacks Research raised shares of National Steel from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Sell” and a consensus price target of $1.40.

Institutional Trading of National Steel

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in National Steel stock. HRT Financial LP raised its position in National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) by 175.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 564,262 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 359,335 shares during the period. HRT Financial LP’s holdings in National Steel were worth $902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

National Steel Company Profile

Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional operates as an integrated steel producer in Brazil and Latin America. It operates through five segments: Steel Industry, Mining, Logistics, Energy, and Cement. The company offers flat steel products, such as hot and cold rolled, galvanized, galvalume, pre-painted, and metal sheets products; coil, sheets, and derivatives; tiles and derivatives, pipes, and profiles; long steel products; steel packaging solutions for the food industry; chemical packaging solution; and carbochemical products.