United States Steel Corporation Stock Sell Recommendation Reiterated (X)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a sell with a ratings score of D+ . The company's weaknesses can be seen in multiple areas, such as its generally high debt management risk, disappointing return on equity, poor profit margins, generally disappointing historical performance in the stock itself and deteriorating net income.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• The debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08 is relatively high when compared with the industry average, suggesting a need for better debt level management. Along with the unfavorable debt-to-equity ratio, X maintains a poor quick ratio of 0.92, which illustrates the inability to avoid short-term cash problems.
• The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Metals & Mining industry and the overall market, UNITED STATES STEEL CORP's return on equity significantly trails that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
• The gross profit margin for UNITED STATES STEEL CORP is currently extremely low, coming in at 10.80%. It has decreased from the same quarter the previous year. Along with this, the net profit margin of 2.00% significantly trails the industry average.
• The share price of UNITED STATES STEEL CORP has not done very well: it is down 7.88% and has underperformed the S&P 500, in part reflecting the company's sharply declining earnings per share when compared to the year-earlier quarter. The fact that the stock is now selling for less than others in its industry in relation to its current earnings is not reason enough to justify a buy rating at this time.
• The change in net income from the same quarter one year ago has exceeded that of the Metals & Mining industry average, but is less than that of the S&P 500. The net income has significantly decreased by 54.5% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, falling from $222.00 million to $101.00 million.

United States Steel Corporation engages in the production and sale of steel mill products in North America and Europe. The company operates in three segments: Flat-rolled Products (Flat-rolled), U. S. Steel Europe (USSE), and Tubular Products (Tubular). United States has a market cap of $2.72 billion and is part of the basic materials sector and metals & mining industry. Shares are down 28.6% year to date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

You can view the full United States Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

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