National Steel (NYSE:SID) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

National Steel Company (NYSE:SID) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $1.21, but opened at $1.17. National Steel shares last traded at $1.1750, with a volume of 1,341,146 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SID has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of National Steel from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of National Steel in a research note on Monday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of National Steel from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Strong Sell” and an average price target of $1.40.

National Steel Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a PE ratio of -3.49 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.96. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $1.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.17.

National Steel (NYSE:SID) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The basic materials company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.12). National Steel had a negative return on equity of 14.90% and a negative net margin of 5.26%.The company had revenue of $2.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.13 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that National Steel Company will post 0.05 EPS for the current year.

About National Steel

Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), historically associated with the “National Steel” name and traded in the United States under the symbol SID, is a Brazilian industrial company headquartered in São Paulo. Founded in 1941, CSN operates one of Brazil’s major integrated steelmaking complexes in Volta Redonda, in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

The company produces flat steel products, including galvanized, tinplate and other coated steels, as well as hot- and cold-rolled steel. Its products serve industries such as automotive manufacturing, construction, packaging, appliances and general industrial production.