- Price is above Fair Value, showing premium demand versus the model.
- Next-week expectancy is positive at 55.28% based on similar historical setup states.
- Activity pressure is constructive, supporting the smart-money activity read.
WS
NYSE
Week ended 24 Jul 2026
Weekly Investor Report
Worthington Steel Inc · Basic Materials · Steel
Latest close
35.98 USD
1.8%
latest week
Weekly setup
Weak trend
The weekly trend is not active. Price is -5.0% below the Trend Line and sits at 41.0% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned 1.8%, after a -6.7% four-week move. The latest factor snapshot indicates quality ranks weakly versus its universe; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive. Options positioning is bullish with 49/100 conviction, while the latest news-sentiment score is 50/100. Near-term considerations: volume confirmation is below normal; earnings are due in 61d.
Setup score
35
out of 100
Latest Close
35.98 USD
24 Jul 2026
1W Return
1.8%
latest completed week
4W Return
-6.7%
short-term follow-through
12W Return
-7.8%
quarterly tape
Trend Breadth
76.9%
40 of 52 weeks active
Volume Ratio
0.8x
vs 13-week average
- The trend backdrop is inactive, so price action has not confirmed a constructive regime.
- Price is below the Trend Line, which keeps downside pressure in focus.
- Activity pressure is negative, which weakens the current setup.
- The share remains more than 20% below its 52-week high.
- Trend Line remains the key weekly regime level.
- Activity pressure is the gauge to monitor for confirmation or fade.
- A volume ratio above 1.5x would show stronger participation in the next move.
Price follow-through
1.8%
Latest completed week; four-week move -6.7%.
Indicator stack
42/31
Trend and activity pressure are weighted against the latest 12-week confirmation window.
Trend backdrop
Active
The trend backdrop defines the current weekly regime.
Patient Capital
Quiet
Activity-pressure buy-signal status for institutional accumulation timing.
Next-Week Expectancy
Positive 55.28%
Historical one-week expectancy contributes to the evidence score when direction is confirmed.
Options pressure
Bullish
49/100 conviction; expected move 10.6%.
News sentiment
50/100
72 relevant articles in the latest sentiment read.
Event risk
61d
Next report is scheduled for 30 Sep 2026; event risk rises as the date approaches.
01 · Price action
Study the full chart
Where price is—and whether the trend supports it
The weekly trend is not active. Price is -5.0% below the Trend Line and sits at 41.0% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned 1.8%, after a -6.7% four-week move.
52-week price path
Price vs Trend Line and Fair Value
Price
Trend Line
Fair Value
02 · Volume and demand
Is real participation confirming the move?
Latest weekly volume is 0.8x the 13-week average. Participation is below its recent norm, so price strength is not receiving full volume confirmation.
26-week volume confirmation
Bar height shows volume; colour shows the weekly price direction
30 Jan
6 Feb
13 Feb
20 Feb
27 Feb
6 Mar
13 Mar
20 Mar
27 Mar
3 Apr
10 Apr
17 Apr
24 Apr
1 May
8 May
15 May
22 May
29 May
5 Jun
12 Jun
19 Jun
26 Jun
3 Jul
10 Jul
17 Jul
24 Jul
Up week
Down week
Demand beneath price
Activity pressure and institutional-style signals
These indicators assess whether participation is improving beneath the headline price move. They are supporting evidence, not proof of institutional buying.
Activity pressure path
Latest 0.6512-week average 0.54
12-week confirmation
Trend active7/12Active trend-backdrop weeks in the latest 12-week window.
Positive pressure5/12Weeks with constructive activity pressure in the latest 12-week window.
Positive leadership8/12Weeks with positive relative leadership in the latest 12-week window.
Activity pressure0.65Current proprietary activity-pressure read.
Buy signals0Accumulation signal count in the latest 12 weeks.
Reversal markers0No reversal markers
No recent accumulation markers. No reversal markers.
03 · Momentum and leadership
Is performance persistent—and is the stock leading?
Performance is -6.7% over four weeks, -7.8% over 12 weeks, and 15.1% over one year. The current trend has remained active for 0 consecutive weeks.
Performance by holding period
Active trend streak0 weeks
Active weeks in one year40
Trend breadth76.9%
Activity pressure vs relative leadership
Activity pressureRelative leadership
Pressure-0.35Latest activity-pressure read.
Pressure change-152.8%Four-week change in activity pressure.
Leadership-5.73Latest relative-leadership reading.
RS change-450.0%Four-week change in relative leadership.
04 · Fundamentals and valuation
Open full factor analysis
What investors are paying for—and the quality behind it
The latest factor snapshot indicates quality ranks weakly versus its universe; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive.
Factor week 26 Jul 2026
Financial statements through 31 May 2026
Field coverage 100%
Model confidence 100%
Relative factor standing
Higher display scores are better. Each score is converted from the underlying universe rank, where rank 1 is best.
Overall factor strength70/100Blend of value, momentum, and quality. Underlying universe rank 31; rank 1 is best.
Value77/100Relative valuation strength. Underlying universe rank 24; rank 1 is best.
Quality13/100Profitability and accounting quality. Underlying universe rank 88; rank 1 is best.
Momentum69/100Medium-term price momentum. Underlying universe rank 32; rank 1 is best.
Growth4/100Revenue and earnings growth. Underlying universe rank 97; rank 1 is best.
Quality and valuation are separate questions
A strong company can still carry a demanding valuation. This report shows profitability, growth, balance-sheet strength, and the price paid for those characteristics separately.
Value-quality framework46/100Value and quality alignment from the Sharemaestro SVQF framework.
Valuation
How much investors are paying for earnings, sales, and cash flow.
- P/E
- 106.9x Price divided by trailing earnings.
- Price / sales
- 0.5x Market value relative to trailing revenue.
- EV / EBITDA
- 10.4x Enterprise value relative to operating cash earnings.
- Free-cash-flow yield
- 17.1% Free cash flow as a share of enterprise value.
Business quality
Margins and the return generated on invested capital.
- Gross margin
- 11.7% Gross profit retained from each unit of revenue.
- Operating margin
- 4.0% Operating profit retained from revenue.
- Free-cash-flow margin
- 11.4% Free cash flow generated from revenue.
- Return on invested capital
- 1.2% Operating return generated on invested capital.
Growth and financial strength
Recent business growth and accounting strength.
- Revenue growth
- 11.3% Latest one-year revenue growth.
- EPS growth
- -84.8% Latest one-year earnings-per-share growth.
- Free-cash-flow growth
- 8.9% Latest one-year free-cash-flow growth.
- Piotroski F-score
- 3/9 Nine-point accounting-strength checklist.
Shareholder return and balance sheet
Cash returned to owners and financial leverage.
- Dividend yield
- 1.8% Cash dividends relative to market value.
- Buyback yield
- 0.0% Net share repurchases relative to market value.
- Shareholder yield
- 1.8% Dividend yield plus net buyback yield.
- Net debt / EBITDA
- 1.2x Balance-sheet debt relative to operating cash earnings.
05 · Ownership, options, and sentiment
What other market participants are doing
Options, insider transactions, market sentiment, and activity-pressure signals can confirm or challenge the price story. None should be used alone.
Options positioningBullish
WS shows bullish options pressure with a 49/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.00, expected move of 10.6%, and Sharemaestro trend signal inactive.
Conviction49/100
Expected move10.6%
Put/call volume0.00
Insider activity-
No recent insider transactions are stored for this company.
News sentiment50/100
Weighted news tone is neutral across 72 relevant articles.
10 positive · 53 neutral · 9 negativePatient CapitalQuiet
Activity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.
No recent buy signal
06 · Catalysts and risk
What can move the shares—and how volatile the path has been
Event timing, options-implied movement, drawdown, and weekly return distribution frame the risk around the current setup.
Next earnings61dNext report is scheduled for 30 Sep 2026; event risk rises as the date approaches.
Options expected move10.6%Nearest-chain priced movement where available.
52-week drawdown-26.2%Distance below the 52-week high.
13-week volatility6.3%Standard deviation of weekly returns.
Weekly gains and losses
Latest 26 completed weeksEach bar is one week. Gains rise above the zero line; losses fall below it. Taller bars mean a larger weekly move.
30 Jan
27 Feb
27 Mar
24 Apr
22 May
19 Jun
24 Jul
Weeks higher12 of 2614 weeks finished lower.
Best week+18.6%Week of 6 Feb.
Worst week-17.0%Week of 3 Jul.
Latest week+1.8%Week of 24 Jul.
Shape of recent returns
Strong gains7
Modest gains5
Flat weeks0
Modest losses6
Sharp losses8
Recent vol6.3%13-week weekly-return volatility.
Base vol6.5%52-week weekly-return volatility.
Up/down split31/21Count of positive and negative weeks in the 52-week window.
Average skew4.5% / -5.5%Average positive week versus average negative week.
07 · Sector and peer context
Is this stock leading—or simply moving with its group?
Sector and industry breadth distinguish company-specific strength from a broad group move.
SectorUS Basic Materials
4-week rank- / 100
Group average-3.2%
Trend breadth28.0%
Trend28.0%active weekly trend signals
MD26.0%positive activity pressure
RS37.0%positive relative leadership
Four-week leaders
IndustryUS Steel
4-week rank14 / 18
Group average8.6%
Trend breadth50.0%
Trend50.0%active weekly trend signals
MD38.9%positive activity pressure
RS55.6%positive relative leadership
Four-week leaders
08 · Evidence and weekly data
The underlying research record
Every top-level statement above should be traceable to a stored market, fundamental, event, or positioning observation.
Weekly tape37/100
Trend, activity pressure, participation, and risk combine to a 37/100 tape read.
Indicator analysis56/100Latest 12-week confirmation: trend 7/12, activity pressure 5/12, relative leadership 8/12.
Activity pressure 0.65; No reversal markers Next-Week ExpectancyPositive 55.28%Next-week expectancy is positive with a 55.28% historical one-week setup read.
Adds short-term historical context without overriding trend, activity, or relative leadership. Factors56/100O'Shaughnessy factor stack blends value, quality, momentum, and confidence.
Buyback Yield rank 56; Small Cap Core rank 37 SVQF46/100Value and quality alignment from the Sharemaestro SVQF framework.
Composite rank 543.5 of 1013 Patient CapitalQuietActivity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.
No recent buy signal Options46/100WS shows bullish options pressure with a 49/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.00, expected move of 10.6%, and Sharemaestro trend signal inactive.
Bullish · Call-side pressure · Expected move 10.6% Sentiment50/100Weighted news tone is neutral across 72 relevant articles.
Worthington Steel (NYSE:WS) Raised to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research Insiders50/100No recent insider transaction evidence is stored.
Earnings61dNext report is scheduled for 30 Sep 2026; event risk rises as the date approaches.
Research flow3 items0 recent research articles and 3 Market Watch posts are available.
| Week | Close | Return | Trend Line | Fair Value | Pressure | Leadership | Volume | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Jul 2026 | 35.98 USD | 1.8% | 37.87 USD | 32.31 USD | -0.35 | -5.73 | 1.1M | Off |
| 17 Jul 2026 | 35.33 USD | 6.9% | 37.86 USD | 32.28 USD | -0.05 | -8.01 | 1.1M | Off |
| 10 Jul 2026 | 33.05 USD | 3.2% | 37.88 USD | 32.26 USD | 0.29 | -15.37 | 1.4M | Off |
| 3 Jul 2026 | 32.02 USD | -17.0% | 37.97 USD | 32.25 USD | 0.56 | -17.15 | 1.7M | Off |
| 26 Jun 2026 | 38.57 USD | -5.3% | 38.08 USD | 32.26 USD | 0.66 | 1.64 | 2.9M | On |
| 19 Jun 2026 | 40.73 USD | -6.3% | 37.91 USD | 32.21 USD | 0.53 | 4.82 | 1.8M | On |
| 12 Jun 2026 | 43.45 USD | 5.0% | 37.60 USD | 32.14 USD | 0.27 | 13.43 | 1.3M | On |
| 5 Jun 2026 | 41.37 USD | -1.6% | 37.20 USD | 32.06 USD | -0.02 | 9.33 | 1.1M | On |
| 29 May 2026 | 42.04 USD | 5.2% | 36.85 USD | 31.99 USD | -0.15 | 8.86 | 792.2K | On |
| 22 May 2026 | 39.94 USD | 3.0% | 36.50 USD | 31.91 USD | -0.30 | 5.50 | 1.2M | On |
| 15 May 2026 | 38.79 USD | -3.7% | 36.21 USD | 31.85 USD | -0.41 | 3.72 | 1.1M | On |
| 8 May 2026 | 40.28 USD | 3.2% | 35.91 USD | 31.79 USD | -0.52 | 8.24 | 1.3M | Off |
| 1 May 2026 | 39.03 USD | 3.8% | 35.53 USD | 31.73 USD | -0.63 | 7.71 | 1.1M | Off |
| 24 Apr 2026 | 37.60 USD | 9.7% | 35.27 USD | 31.67 USD | -0.75 | 5.07 | 943.7K | Off |
How to use this report
This is a completed-week research summary. It explains the available evidence and its conflicts; it does not predict a guaranteed outcome or replace your own risk assessment. Fundamental figures may refer to an earlier financial reporting period, which is shown above.