Federated Hermes Inc. Lowers Position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Federated Hermes Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 52.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 39,785 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 44,418 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $6,924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NUE. SVB Wealth LLC lifted its position in Nucor by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 3,656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $636,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC increased its position in Nucor by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC now owns 220 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its stake in Nucor by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 822 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its holdings in Nucor by 1.7% in the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 4,168 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $652,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Nucor by 3.5% in the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,066 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Stock Performance

NUE stock opened at $172.76 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 4.02 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Nucor Co. has a 1 year low of $129.79 and a 1 year high of $203.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $191.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.17.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The basic materials company reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.62 by ($0.16). Nucor had a return on equity of 19.62% and a net margin of 12.40%. The firm had revenue of $8.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 12.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were 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 approximately $23,351,936.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.19, for a total value of $1,901,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 80,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,386,751.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Douglas J. Jellison sold 19,506 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.41, for a total value of $3,772,655.46. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 120,738 shares in the company, valued at $23,351,936.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,151 shares of company stock worth $7,308,683. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NUE shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $195.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group started coverage on Nucor in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.14.

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.