2004 Gerdau Annual Report

26 27 capital markets
Publicly traded company in Canada
The debut of Gerdau Ameristeel on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2004 translated into a new level
of liquidity for its shares. Starting in October, when trading of Ameristeel stock at the NYSE began, until
the end of December, trading volume reached US$ 107.5 million, representing an average daily volume of
US$ 2.6 million. In addition, the listing in the U.S. increased the trading volume on the Toronto Stock Exchange,
where Gerdau Ameristeel has been listed since 2002. In the first nine months of 2004, the average daily
trading volume on the Toronto Stock Exchange was US$ 871,000. Taking into consideration the trades at the
NYSE, this volume reached US$ 5.9 million in the last quarter.
Gerdau Ameristeel is the second Gerdau Group company listed on the main world financial center. Gerdau
S.A., one of the Group’s publicly traded companies in Brazil, was listed in 1999.
Gerdau Ameristeel carried out two capital increase operations in 2004. In April, 26.8 million common shares
were purchased by Gerdau Ameristeel’s parent company, Gerdau S.A., for Cdn$ 4.90 per share, for a total of
US$ 100 million, generating resources for equipment financing, working capital, and debt payment.
In November, Gerdau Ameristeel issued a public offering of 78.8 million common shares to raise
US$ 370 million. This was the Company’s first international fund raising effort through the issuance of new
shares. The aim of the operation was to secure funds for the acquisition of North Star Steel assets, increase
the shareholder base in the United States and increase the liquidity of shares.
After these operations, Gerdau S.A. had increased its stake in Gerdau Ameristeel to 66.5%.
The company’s net revenues, adjusted to Brazilian accounting practices, reached R$ 8.9 billion in 2004,
with a profit of R$ 896.3 million. As a result, the Board of Directors decided for the quarterly payment
of dividends to shareholders starting in 2005. In March, individuals holding shares on February 16, 2005,
received US$ 0.02 per share in dividends. This amount refers to the first quarter of 2005, and totals
US$ 6.1 million.
Relationship with shareholders, investors and analysts
The Gerdau Group’s relationship with shareholders, investors and analysts is guided by disclosure and
fast response to market demands. In 2004, six meetings were held with Apimec, the Association of
Market Analysts and Investment Brokers. The meetings, broadcast in real time through the Internet and
available for replay until the end of the quarter, attracted 870 people. Gerdau’s investor relations team
held 280 individual meetings with market professionals in Brazil, North America and Europe. It organized
eight conference calls to discuss quarterly results in both Portuguese and English, attracting over 800
participants.
Total Shareholder Return (Steel Companies) - 1997 to 2004 (%)
METALÚRGICA GERDAU
GERDAU
BELGO
1,016.0
CSN
782.0
USIMINAS
236.0
COMMERCIAL METALS
170.0
NUCOR
105.0
STEEL DYNAMICS
98.0
1,513.0
1,605.0
Total shareholder return reflects the
dollar increase in the value of shares for
the period indicated, assuming that the
dividends distributed were reinvested in
shares of the same company.
Source: Bloomberg and Economática
Period from December 31 1996 to
December 31 2004