Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Trims Stock Holdings in Worthington Steel, Inc. $WS

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio decreased its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS) by 90.6% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,603 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,430 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Worthington Steel were worth $49,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WS. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel by 1,239.3% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 750 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 694 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Worthington Steel by 56.4% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Worthington Steel during the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Worthington Steel in the 4th quarter worth about $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.41% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Clifford Larivey sold 11,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.09, for a total value of $445,199.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 64,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,578,107.72. This represents a 14.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Timothy A. Adams sold 2,367 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.27, for a total transaction of $100,053.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,098 shares in the company, valued at $1,864,022.46. This represents a 5.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,708 shares of company stock worth $1,431,830. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Worthington Steel Price Performance

NYSE:WS opened at $37.22 on Friday. Worthington Steel, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.22 and a 52-week high of $49.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $37.46 and a 200 day moving average of $38.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77 and a beta of 2.30.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. Worthington Steel had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 0.50%.The business had revenue of $929.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $992.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Worthington Steel, Inc. will post 3.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Worthington Steel’s payout ratio is presently 46.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WS shares. Wall Street Zen cut Worthington Steel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Zacks Research raised shares of Worthington Steel from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Worthington Steel from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research note on Monday, June 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.00.

Worthington Steel Company Profile

Worthington Steel (NYSE: WS) is a leading North American steel processor specializing in the production of flat-rolled, coated and painted sheet and coil products. Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Worthington Industries, the company serves a broad range of industries, including construction, automotive, appliance, energy and agricultural equipment. Its core business activities encompass the processing, finishing and distribution of carbon and advanced high-strength steels, aluminum and stainless products to manufacturers across the continent.

The company’s product portfolio includes hot-dip galvanizing, galvannealed, aluminized and pre-painted steel products, as well as cold-rolled and hot-rolled coil.