Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Hits New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $113.25 and last traded at $113.56, with a volume of 119486 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $114.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Nucor from $170.00 to $168.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 price target (down from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nucor has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.75.

Nucor Trading Up 0.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.11 billion, a PE ratio of 11.15 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50-day moving average is $139.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $146.96.

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

Nucor Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is presently 21.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 98,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,499,436. The trade was a 8.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 4,968 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.72, for a total value of $793,488.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,636,254.72. This represents a 5.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,680 shares of company stock worth $4,773,724 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NUE. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Nucor during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 45.6% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Nucor by 60.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.