Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) Receives $183.75 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $173.75.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NUE shares. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Argus upgraded shares of Nucor to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In related news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,636,254.72. The trade was a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 98,770 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,499,436. The trade was a 8.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,680 shares of company stock valued at $4,773,724. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Widmann Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Nucor by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Nucor by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Nucor by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $351,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its stake in 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 last quarter. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in Nucor by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,467 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $822,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nucor Stock Up 0.0 %

Nucor stock opened at $116.61 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.59. Nucor has a fifty-two week low of $113.94 and a fifty-two week high of $203.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $145.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.67.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.09. Nucor had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 8.05%. The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Nucor will post 8.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.89%. This is an increase from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is 21.26%.

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.