Moors & Cabot Inc. Sells 383 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Moors & Cabot Inc. trimmed its holdings in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 13.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,473 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 383 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Nucor during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Nucor during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Nucor by 60.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Nucor by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 417 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Price Performance

Shares of NUE opened at $132.26 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.42. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $112.25 and a 52-week high of $203.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.49 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.28. Nucor had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 6.60%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.16 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on NUE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Nucor in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Nucor from $154.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Nucor has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.33.

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.