Worthington Steel, Inc. $WS Shares Purchased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE:WS) by 29.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 201,425 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 46,358 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.40% of Worthington Steel worth $6,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Worthington Steel by 1,239.3% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 750 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Worthington Steel by 56.4% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 910 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Worthington Steel in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. OP Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the first quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Worthington Steel during the fourth quarter worth $67,000. 45.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Worthington Steel

In other news, CFO Timothy A. Adams sold 2,367 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.27, for a total value of $100,053.09. Following the sale, the chief financial officer 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey R. Klingler sold 20,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.82, for a total value of $877,977.52. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 93,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,084,549.84. This trade represents a 17.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,708 shares of company stock valued at $1,431,830. 2.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Worthington Steel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Worthington Steel in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Worthington Steel from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Worthington Steel has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $46.00.

Worthington Steel Stock Performance

WS opened at $36.64 on Tuesday. Worthington Steel, Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.22 and a 12-month high of $49.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36 and a beta of 2.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $38.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.04.

Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $929.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $992.00 million. Worthington Steel had a net margin of 0.50% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.05 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Worthington Steel, Inc. will post 3.39 EPS for the current year.

Worthington Steel Announces Dividend

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

About Worthington Steel

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.