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

Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $164.44.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NUE shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Nucor from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus set a $155.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group upgraded Nucor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $156.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Nucor from $150.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th.

Nucor Trading Down 4.4 %

Shares of NUE stock opened at $121.90 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.58. Nucor has a 12-month low of $112.25 and a 12-month high of $203.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $130.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.29.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the business posted $3.16 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Nucor will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Nucor’s payout ratio is currently 26.16%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Nucor by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,427,899 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,724,117,000 after acquiring an additional 326,181 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Nucor by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,967,254 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $701,255,000 after purchasing an additional 105,309 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth $398,077,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Nucor by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,435,265 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $284,220,000 after purchasing an additional 384,205 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Nucor by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,404,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $280,627,000 after purchasing an additional 474,274 shares during the last quarter. 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.