Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) shares gapped down before the market opened 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). Nucor had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.45 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Nucor’s payout ratio is 12.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Nucor from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Citigroup upgraded Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Nucor in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $210.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Nucor has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $192.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nucor news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Nucor news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.37, for a total value of $1,025,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,326 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,902,206.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total transaction of $3,772,655.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 120,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,351,936.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,151 shares of company stock worth $7,308,683 in the last ninety days. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its holdings in Nucor by 208.0% during the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Nucor by 54.1% in the 1st quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 168 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its position in Nucor by 716.7% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 196 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $41.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 1.61. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $191.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.18. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

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.