Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $179.3636.

Several brokerages recently commented on NUE. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. UBS Group cut shares of Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $183.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Nucor from $182.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on shares of Nucor from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd.

Nucor Stock Down 3.1%

NUE opened at $182.97 on Tuesday. Nucor has a twelve month low of $97.59 and a twelve month high of $196.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $172.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $154.31. The company has a market cap of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.86.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.18). Nucor had a return on equity of 8.26% and a net margin of 5.37%.The firm had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Nucor will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 2,000 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.28, for a total transaction of $330,560.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,952 shares in the company, valued at $2,967,106.56. The trade was a 10.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total transaction of $1,460,741.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,020,620.56. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 34,351 shares of company stock worth $6,206,158 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NUE. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 40,113 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,543,000 after buying an additional 3,963 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Nucor by 1,130.2% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,312 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,802,000 after acquiring an additional 21,417 shares during the period. Sargent Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter worth approximately $252,000. MML Investors Services LLC increased its stake in Nucor by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 30,813 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,026,000 after acquiring an additional 4,195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor’s operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.

Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value‑added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.