BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for United States Steel (NYSE:X) Stock

United States Steel (NYSE:X) had its price objective upped by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 9.57% from the company’s current price.

X has been the topic of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on United States Steel from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of United States Steel from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of United States Steel in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of United States Steel from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Steel currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.32.

United States Steel Stock Performance

Shares of X stock opened at $41.07 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $37.75 and a 200-day moving average of $36.75. The company has a market cap of $9.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. United States Steel has a 52 week low of $26.92 and a 52 week high of $43.35.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.38). United States Steel had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 4.27%. On average, equities analysts forecast that United States Steel will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United States Steel

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of United States Steel by 64.0% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 710 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in United States Steel by 0.7% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 44,450 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,570,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of United States Steel by 4.8% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,012 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of United States Steel by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,880 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its stake in shares of United States Steel by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,005 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the period. 81.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.