Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $187.90.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Nucor from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Nucor from $190.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Nucor from $184.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 29th.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE stock opened at $163.52 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.45. The company has a market cap of $37.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Nucor has a twelve month low of $97.59 and a twelve month high of $196.90.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $7.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.93 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 8.26% and a net margin of 5.37%.The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Nucor will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, February 20th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to reacquire up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.28, for a total transaction of $330,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,967,106.56. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of Nucor 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares in the company, valued at $15,020,620.56. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,351 shares of company stock valued at $6,206,158. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stance Capital LLC bought a new position in Nucor during the third quarter worth $25,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Company Profile

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.