Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Argus

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) was upgraded by analysts at Argus to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday, Zacks.com reports.

NUE has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Nucor in a research report on Monday, May 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Nucor from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Nucor from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target 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, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $194.43.

Nucor Stock Performance

NUE stock opened at $150.37 on Monday. Nucor has a 1-year low of $139.41 and a 1-year high of $203.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $153.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $171.33. The company has a market capitalization of $36.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.85 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 1.85.

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

Insider Transactions at Nucor

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. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in Nucor during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its stake in Nucor by 208.0% during the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.