Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target Raised to $184.00 at UBS Group

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its target price hoisted by UBS Group from $183.00 to $184.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

NUE has been the subject of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Nucor from $190.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nucor in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Seaport Research Partners lifted their price target on Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Nucor from $182.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $188.00.

Nucor Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE NUE opened at $162.78 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business has a 50-day moving average of $177.09 and a 200-day moving average of $158.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.83. Nucor has a 12 month low of $97.59 and a 12 month high of $196.90.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by ($0.18). Nucor had a net margin of 5.37% and a return on equity of 8.26%. The company had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Nucor will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.71%.

Nucor announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the basic materials company to buy up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total value of $1,460,741.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,020,620.56. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 7,568 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total transaction of $1,426,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 67,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,763,523.50. This trade represents a 10.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 34,351 shares of company stock worth $6,206,158 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,528,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Nucor by 15,814.3% during the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $452,000 after acquiring an additional 3,321 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp bought a new stake in Nucor during the third quarter worth about $1,085,000. Peterson Wealth Services grew its holdings in Nucor by 587,032.0% in the third quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 146,783 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $19,879,000 after purchasing an additional 146,758 shares during the period. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of Nucor by 11.7% during the second quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 135,065 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,496,000 after purchasing an additional 14,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

About Nucor

Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor’s operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.

Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value‑added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.