Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Stock Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE)’s stock price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $255.28 and traded as high as $259.90. Nucor shares last traded at $256.7180, with a volume of 1,219,310 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NUE. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Nucor from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Barclays lifted their price target on Nucor from $306.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Wedbush set a $304.00 price objective on Nucor in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $304.00 price objective on Nucor in a research note on Friday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $287.38.

Nucor Trading Up 3.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 2.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.34, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $255.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $226.38.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The basic materials company reported $5.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.84 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $11.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.84 billion. Nucor had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 9.26%. The business’s revenue was up 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.63 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Nucor Corporation will post 19.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Nucor’s payout ratio is 14.26%.

Insider Activity

In other Nucor news, EVP Noah Hanners sold 5,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.03, for a total value of $1,427,405.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,121,397.19. This represents a 10.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Stephen Laxton sold 10,560 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.98, for a total transaction of $2,903,788.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 77,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,411,867.66. This trade represents a 11.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 28,732 shares of company stock valued at $7,881,287. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,452,563,000. Aberdeen Group plc increased its holdings in Nucor by 5,993.6% during the third quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 14,971,918 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,419,287,000 after buying an additional 14,726,217 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Nucor during the second quarter worth about $462,886,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in Nucor in the second quarter worth about $413,814,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Nucor in the second quarter valued at about $330,902,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation is a U.S.-based steel and steel products manufacturer. Its steel mills produce sheet, plate, bar, structural steel and reinforcing bar used in construction, manufacturing, transportation and other industries. The company also makes downstream products such as steel joists, decking, fasteners, wire products and metal building components. Its operations include recycling ferrous scrap and producing direct reduced iron, materials used in steelmaking. Nucor traces its roots to 1905 and developed into a steel producer during the mid-20th century.