MFA Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 258 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 94.2% in the first quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Nucor by 208.0% in the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Nucor stock traded up $3.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $146.46. 1,018,962 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,470,396. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 1.85. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $154.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $172.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.62 and a beta of 1.57. Nucor Co. has a 1 year low of $139.41 and a 1 year high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.37. Nucor had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 10.45%. The business had revenue of $8.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.81 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 10.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th were given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on NUE shares. StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Nucor from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, May 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Nucor from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $187.00 to $176.00 in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $194.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 8,624 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $1,379,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,847,840. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.