Gerdau S/A 
is a Brazil-based company engaged in the production and commercialization of steel products. It operates in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, the United States, Canada, Spain and India, among others. The Company has 272 industrial and commercial facilities. Its product line includes roofing, flooring and square nails, as well as wires for the agricultural and construction industries. The Company has various subsidiaries, such as Gerdau Acos Longos SA, Gerdau Acominas SA, Empresa Siderurgica del Peru SA and Gerdau Comercial de Acos SA. On February 21, 2008, the Company acquired a 50.9% stake in Cleary Holdings Corp., which controls coke production units and coking coal reserves in Colombia.
Top Down Analysis Approach
1) Gerdau belongs to the Steel industry. Over 20% of a stock performance comes from it’s industry = how does the Steel industry compare to other industries?
2) What are the top stocks in that industry? We look at them ranked by their fundamentals and price change over the last 3-months and compare to Gerdau
The Steel Industry - the following table is my proprietary rank of industries. Note how the Steel is ranked number 2 and it has been a consistent performer over the 1, 3 and 6-months. Conclusion: Gerdau is in a top industry - check.
The following is the ratio chart of the Steel industry compared to the S&P 500. It basically shows the relative strength of one instrument compared to other. In summary, Steel has started a trend in October 2006 and has been strong since then.
Top Ranked Steel Stocks
Accordingly to my strict stock evaluation system (to be released for public consumption within the next 2 months) Gerdau is ranked # 4 of all the steel stocks.
I have used the letters A+, A, B and B- to classify their technical patterns. Note how AKS and CLF are the strongest (A+), followed by GGB (A) and WOR being the weakest (B-).
Look at how today’s volume was higher on AKS and CLF. In summary, GGB is a good buy and looks well positioned to continue upwards. Good luck to you 
