Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Cuts Holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky trimmed its position in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 8.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,222 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,700 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Nucor were worth $2,739,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 129.0% in the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 158 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Nucor in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in Nucor in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Nucor by 45.6% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $125.25 on Monday. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $125.00 and a 52-week high of $203.00. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 1.55.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.28 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.57 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Nucor Co. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a positive change from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is 21.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NUE has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 price objective (down from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Argus raised shares of Nucor to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $183.75.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,376 shares in the company, valued at $13,636,254.72. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 4,712 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.53, for a total value of $798,825.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 82,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,923,837.96. This trade represents a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,680 shares of company stock valued at $4,773,724. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.