We recently published a list of the 15 Small-Cap Construction and Materials Stocks Hedge Funds Are Buying. In this article, we are going to take a look at where POSCO Holdings Inc. (NYSE:PKX) stands against other small-cap construction and materials stocks.

Saira Malik, Nuveen’s head of equities and fixed income, joined ‘Closing Bell’ on CNBC on March 26 to discuss her investment strategy in the middle of this uncertain market. She emphasized that two dominant themes are shaping the second quarter of this year: policy uncertainty and questions surrounding the pace of the economic slowdown. Malik noted that markets have shown a little optimism after a rebound from correction territory. This was driven by investor expectations of watered-down tariffs and the return of the term ‘transitory’ regarding inflation effects from tariffs. However, she highlighted that the economy continues to slow. Given this, Malik prefers defensive market sectors, particularly infrastructure. She also identified municipal bonds as a favored fixed-income category.

These appeal to local investors who seek stable income streams in the middle of this economic uncertainty. Malik also acknowledged the risk that continued negative sentiment about consumer weakness could become a self-fulfilling prophecy. She pointed out that the economy’s recent strength has been driven by consumer spending and employment, with about half of payroll growth since 2019 coming from government jobs. The recent data on consumer spending, retail sales, and confidence have been weak, but consumers often express pessimism without reducing spending proportionally. Despite this, she stressed that the economy is slowing and warned that ongoing tariff uncertainty could cause a sharper economic downturn. However, she also mentioned potential upside from forthcoming tax cuts and deregulation, which could provide economic support. Malik explained that the market’s recent optimism comes from increasing clarity about tariff implementation and targets.

Our Methodology

We first sifted through financial media reports, ETFs, and Insider Monkey’s Q4 2024 hedge funds database reports to compile a list of the small-cap construction and materials stocks hedge funds are buying. For this article, we define small-cap stocks as those that trade between $10 billion and $30 billion, as of April 28. We then selected the top 15 stocks and ranked them in ascending order of the number of hedge funds that have stakes in them. In cases where an equal number of hedge funds held two or more stocks, we used the market cap as a tiebreaker.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

A close-up shot of a worker welding steel beam together in a large steel foundry.

POSCO Holdings Inc. (NYSE:PKX)

Market Capitalization as of April 28: $13.57 billion

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 19

POSCO Holdings Inc. (NYSE:PKX) operates as an integrated steel producer in Korea and internationally. It operates through six segments: Steel, Trading, Construction, Logistics & Others, Green Materials & Energy, and Others. The company plans, designs, and constructs industrial plants, civil engineering projects, and commercial & residential buildings.

POSCO’s crude steel output in Q1 2025 dropped by 5.5% sequentially due to the impact of overall maintenance works. However, selling prices slightly increased, and raw materials costs remain stable. The company also made several cost-saving efforts enterprise-wide. These factors together caused the operating profit margin to rise by 3.9%.

Therefore, management also anticipates that sales will potentially recover in Q2, as the reduced volumes cannot be attributed to decreased demand. Furthermore, POSCO Holdings Inc. (NYSE:PKX) is expanding its upstream steel production presence in key global regions, which include the US and India, to address evolving trade environments and enhance its automotive steel sheet market position.

Overall, PKX ranks 13th on our list of the small-cap construction and materials stocks hedge funds are buying. While we acknowledge the growth potential of PKX, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold great promise for delivering high returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PKX but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.