Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Price Target Cut to $170.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $176.00 to $170.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Nucor from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and lifted their target price for the company from $170.00 to $174.00 in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Argus raised Nucor to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $192.00.

Nucor Stock Performance

NUE stock opened at $146.31 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 1.85. Nucor has a 1 year low of $133.42 and a 1 year high of $203.00. The company has a market cap of $35.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.61 and a beta of 1.55. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $149.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $166.15.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.37. Nucor had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 10.45%. The business had revenue of $8.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.81 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Nucor will post 9.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 8,624 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $1,379,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,847,840. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 2.5% during the second quarter. Vienna Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne S.A. Vienna Insurance Group now owns 7,511 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,187,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor in the 2nd quarter worth $7,248,000. Ariadne Wealth Management LP bought a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,359,000. SPC Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Nucor by 1.2% during the second quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 8,897 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,406,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 103.6% in the second quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,619 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,050,000 after purchasing an additional 13,038 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

About Nucor

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.