Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $191.63, but opened at $177.70. Nucor shares last traded at $180.77, with a volume of 1,024,329 shares traded.

The basic materials company reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.62 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 13.03%. Nucor’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.45 EPS.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on NUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Nucor from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group began coverage on Nucor in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup raised Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.83.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In related news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total value of $3,772,655.46. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total value of $3,772,655.46. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael D. Keller sold 3,145 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.67, for a total value of $609,092.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 24,873 shares in the company, valued at $4,817,153.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,151 shares of company stock valued at $7,308,683. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NUE. PFG Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 21.3% during the third quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 2,359 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at $235,000. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 109.2% during the third quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 56,015 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,758,000 after buying an additional 29,241 shares in the last quarter. 1900 Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Nucor during the third quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Nucor by 310.9% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Trading Down 6.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $43.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.96 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 3.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.30 and a 200-day moving average of $174.06.

Nucor Company 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.