Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nucor (NYSE:NUE) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Nucor from $294.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on shares of Nucor from $245.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Nucor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Nucor from $285.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Nucor from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $274.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.07.

Nucor Stock Down 1.1%

NUE stock opened at $244.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.87. The business has a 50-day moving average of $256.30 and a 200-day moving average of $230.25. Nucor has a fifty-two week low of $131.32 and a fifty-two week high of $280.11.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $4.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.46 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $10.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.15 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 7.99%.Nucor’s quarterly revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 18.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. Nucor’s payout ratio is presently 17.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In other news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total transaction of $1,044,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,138 shares in the company, valued at $4,212,340.76. The trade was a 19.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Stephen D. Laxton sold 3,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.96, for a total transaction of $1,019,617.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,008,704.32. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 7.6% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,787 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,076,000 after buying an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Andra AP fonden increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 39.2% during the 2nd quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 56,182 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,515,000 after acquiring an additional 15,833 shares during the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA raised its stake in Nucor by 17.0% in the 2nd quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 14,393 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,206,000 after acquiring an additional 2,090 shares during the period. Talon Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Nucor in the 2nd quarter valued at $200,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Nucor by 31.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 61,952 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,800,000 after purchasing an additional 14,736 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation is a Charlotte, North Carolina-based steel producer and one of the largest steel companies in North America. The company operates electric arc furnace (EAF) steel mills that use recycled scrap steel as a primary raw material, along with facilities that manufacture and process steel products for construction, manufacturing, transportation, energy and other industrial markets.

Nucor’s product portfolio includes carbon and alloy steel in sheet, plate, bar and structural forms, as well as reinforcing steel, wire and wire mesh.