Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $190.57.

Several analysts recently weighed in on NUE shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Argus raised Nucor to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.11, for a total transaction of $1,860,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 172,136 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,109,918.96. This represents a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 98,770 shares in the company, valued at $14,499,436. The trade was a 8.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,680 shares of company stock worth $4,773,724 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC grew its position in shares of Nucor by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 1,630 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Widmann Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Nucor by 4.0% during the third quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Nucor by 2.1% in the second quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 3.3% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 45.6% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NUE opened at $151.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $149.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.07. The company has a market cap of $35.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.68 and a beta of 1.55. Nucor has a 12 month low of $133.42 and a 12 month high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.28 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. Nucor’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.57 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 8.52 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Nucor’s payout ratio is 20.87%.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of steel and steel products. It operates in three segments: steel mills, steel products, and raw materials. The Steel Mills segment produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and galvanized sheet steel products; plate steel products; wide-flange beams, beam blanks, and H-piling and sheet piling structural steel products; bar steel products, such as blooms, billets, concrete reinforcing and merchant bars, and engineered special bar quality products; and engages in the steel trading and rebar distribution businesses.