Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Buys 641 Shares of United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in United States Steel Co. (NYSE:X) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 45,858 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in United States Steel were worth $1,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of United States Steel by 26.5% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,598,831 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $162,477,000 after buying an additional 964,467 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of United States Steel by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,839,684 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $135,691,000 after buying an additional 37,528 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of United States Steel by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,600,708 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $91,883,000 after buying an additional 28,293 shares during the period. Castle Hook Partners LP acquired a new stake in United States Steel during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $91,712,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in United States Steel during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,620,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.92% of the company’s stock.

United States Steel Price Performance

United States Steel stock opened at $40.17 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.96, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.86. United States Steel Co. has a 52-week low of $26.92 and a 52-week high of $48.13. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $35.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.55.

United States Steel (NYSE:X) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.38). United States Steel had a return on equity of 4.27% and a net margin of 2.46%. On average, equities analysts predict that United States Steel Co. will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

United States Steel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. United States Steel’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on X. Bank of America began coverage on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $39.00 target price on shares of United States Steel in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of United States Steel from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of United States Steel from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United States Steel has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.82.

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.