Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $150.00 to $156.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 18.89% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $156.00 price target (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Nucor from $154.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Four 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.com, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $164.33.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE:NUE opened at $131.21 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $129.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.76. Nucor has a 1-year low of $112.25 and a 1-year high of $203.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market cap of $30.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 9.85%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.16 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Nucor will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NUE. Widmann Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Nucor by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Nucor by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC now owns 3,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Nucor by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,657 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,111,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in Nucor by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 4,629 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in Nucor by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,157 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Company Profile

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.