International Assets Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE)

International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,824 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,967,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $701,255,000 after acquiring an additional 105,309 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $398,077,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,435,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $284,220,000 after acquiring an additional 384,205 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,404,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $280,627,000 after acquiring an additional 474,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,680,468 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $196,127,000 after acquiring an additional 68,252 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:NUE opened at $131.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $118.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.19. Nucor Corporation has a 1 year low of $97.59 and a 1 year high of $170.52.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $7.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.25 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 6.82% and a net margin of 4.40%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.46 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Nucor Corporation will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Nucor from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Nucor from $156.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Nucor from $153.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $150.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 34,238 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.19, for a total transaction of $4,115,065.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 162,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,590,128.67. This represents a 17.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 7,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.87, for a total value of $906,342.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,707,592.73. This trade represents a 6.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Profile

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.