Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Stock Lifted to Hold by Cfra

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) was upgraded by investment analysts at Cfra from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on NUE. Bank of America decreased their target price on Nucor from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Zacks Research raised Nucor from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Nucor from $286.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley set a $270.00 price target on shares of Nucor in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Nucor from $224.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.38.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NUE opened at $273.38 on Wednesday. Nucor has a 12 month low of $140.93 and a 12 month high of $287.70. The stock has a market cap of $62.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.81. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $255.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The basic materials company reported $5.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.84 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $11.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.84 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Noah C. Hanners sold 5,190 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.03, for a total value of $1,427,405.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,073 shares in the company, valued at $12,121,397.19. The trade was a 10.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael D. Keller sold 1,136 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.33, for a total value of $317,318.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 15,588 shares in the company, valued at $4,354,196.04. The trade was a 6.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,172 shares of company stock worth $4,977,498. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NUE. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,452,563,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 0.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,539,044 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $429,298,000 after buying an additional 22,718 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the second quarter worth about $462,886,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new position in shares of Nucor in the second quarter worth about $413,814,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Nucor by 1.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,809,899 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $306,054,000 after acquiring an additional 29,476 shares in the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nucor News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Nucor this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Nucor reportedly reached a 52-week high following an analyst upgrade. The company’s recent third-quarter revenue beat estimates and fourth-quarter outlook was described as steady to slightly better than recent results. Article: Nucor Reaches New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighted Nucor’s strong balance sheet and cash flow, which supported $1.36 billion in shareholder returns and could help fund future growth, buybacks and dividend increases. Article: Can NUE’s Strong Balance Sheet Power Bigger Shareholder Returns Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue rose 32% year over year to $11.25 billion, above estimates, but EPS of $5.80 narrowly missed the $5.84 consensus. The results show significant year-over-year improvement, though the earnings miss tempers the positive read-through.
• Negative Sentiment: Two insiders recently sold shares. EVP Allen Behr sold 11,846 shares, reducing his holdings by 16.95%; Michael Keller sold 1,136 shares, trimming his stake by 6.79%. Insider sales can be for personal reasons, but may create some near-term caution. SEC filing for Allen Behr sale SEC filing for Michael Keller sale

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation is a steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company manufactures steel and steel products for customers in construction, automotive, energy, heavy equipment, transportation and other industrial markets.

Nucor’s operations include electric arc furnace steel mills, which produce carbon, alloy and galvanized steel products. Its product portfolio includes sheet steel, plate, beams, bars, wire and wire mesh, steel joists, deck, piling, fabricated concrete reinforcing steel and other downstream products.