Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $273.3077.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on NUE shares. Barclays upped their target price on Nucor from $272.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on Nucor from $210.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Argus upped their price objective on Nucor from $200.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen raised Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Nucor from $260.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP John J. Hollatz sold 10,560 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.46, for a total transaction of $2,729,337.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 97,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,294,187.90. This represents a 9.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.02, for a total transaction of $1,044,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,138 shares in the company, valued at $4,212,340.76. The trade was a 19.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 18,528 shares of company stock valued at $4,793,035 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Stance Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth $25,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Nucor in the second quarter valued at $28,000. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nucor Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE NUE opened at $272.73 on Tuesday. Nucor has a 12-month low of $131.32 and a 12-month high of $280.11. The company has a market capitalization of $61.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $247.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.03.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The basic materials company reported $4.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.38. Nucor had a net margin of 7.99% and a return on equity of 12.73%. The business had revenue of $10.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 17.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is 17.86%.

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.