Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) Short Interest Up 19.8% in December

Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,180,000 shares, an increase of 19.8% from the December 15th total of 15,180,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 10,810,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Gerdau Price Performance

Shares of Gerdau stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $2.84. 15,201,608 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,803,218. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 2.98. Gerdau has a 1-year low of $2.67 and a 1-year high of $4.04. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 1.73. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $3.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.25.

Gerdau Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $0.0528 per share. This is an increase from Gerdau’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.21 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.45%. Gerdau’s payout ratio is presently 41.45%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gerdau

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Gerdau by 132.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,681 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 4,952 shares during the last quarter. Zhang Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gerdau during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Gerdau in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gerdau during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. bought a new stake in Gerdau during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Gerdau

Gerdau SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a steel producer company. The company operates through Brazil Business, North America Business, South America Business, and Special Steel Business segments. It also provides semi-finished products, including billets, blooms, and slabs; common long rolled products, such as rebars, wire rods, merchant bars, light shapes, and profiles to the construction and manufacturing industries; drawn products comprising barbed and barbless fence wires, galvanized wires, fences, concrete reinforcing wire mesh, nails, and clamps for manufacturing, construction, and agricultural industries; and special steel products used in auto parts, light and heavy vehicles, and agricultural machinery, as well as in the oil and gas, wind energy, machinery and equipment, mining and rail, and other markets.