Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Decreases Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV trimmed its position in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,984 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 689 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in Nucor were worth $932,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $137.75 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $124.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.34. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $112.25 and a 52-week high of $203.00. The company has a market cap of $32.34 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.60.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 7.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NUE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $166.00 to $154.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.13.

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.