Ryerson Holding Co. (NYSE:RYI) Short Interest Down 24.9% in March

Ryerson Holding Co. (NYSE:RYI) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 773,500 shares, a decline of 24.9% from the March 15th total of 1,030,000 shares. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 219,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

Ryerson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RYI traded down $0.88 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $32.63. 163,628 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 256,671. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Ryerson has a 1 year low of $26.15 and a 1 year high of $44.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.47. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.02 and a beta of 1.65.

Ryerson (NYSE:RYI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.49. Ryerson had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.65) earnings per share.

Ryerson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.188 per share. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from Ryerson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Ryerson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.43%.

Insider Transactions at Ryerson

In other news, insider Alagu Sundarrajan sold 7,407 shares of Ryerson stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.77, for a total transaction of $242,727.39. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,077 shares in the company, valued at $428,533.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of RYI. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of Ryerson by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,500 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 303 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ryerson by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 16,667 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $578,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ryerson by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 7,491 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Ryerson by 24.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,861 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 362 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of Ryerson by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 22,643 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $583,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. 94.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ryerson Company Profile

Ryerson Holding Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, processes and distributes industrial metals in the United States and internationally. It offers a line of products in carbon steel, stainless steel, alloy steels, and aluminum, as well as nickel and red metals in various shapes and forms, including coils, sheets, rounds, hexagons, square and flat bars, plates, structural, and tubing.