Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Earns “Sector Weight” Rating from KeyCorp

Nucor (NYSE:NUE)‘s stock had its “sector weight” rating reissued by analysts at KeyCorp in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on NUE. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Seaport Research Partners upped their price target on Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Nucor from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $180.00 target price (up from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Nucor from $194.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Nucor currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $188.30.

Nucor Price Performance

NYSE NUE opened at $165.43 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $37.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.83. Nucor has a 1 year low of $97.59 and a 1 year high of $196.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $176.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $159.27.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.18). Nucor had a net margin of 5.37% and a return on equity of 8.26%. The business had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Nucor will post 7.64 EPS for the current year.

Nucor announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 3,881 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total value of $690,818.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 88,298 shares in the company, valued at $15,717,044. This trade represents a 4.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 7,568 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total value of $1,426,568.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 67,711 shares in the company, valued at $12,763,523.50. This trade represents a 10.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 26,401 shares of company stock valued at $4,936,152. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NUE. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Nucor by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,407,540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,633,554,000 after purchasing an additional 144,038 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Nucor by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,501,779 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,626,321,000 after purchasing an additional 371,911 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in Nucor in the 2nd quarter valued at about $856,792,000. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Nucor by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,853,205 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $628,497,000 after purchasing an additional 41,728 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $609,002,000. 76.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Nucor Company Profile

Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) is an American steel producer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacture and sale of steel and steel products, operating a network of steel mills, recycling facilities and fabrication plants across the United States and North America. Nucor’s operations emphasize electric arc furnace steelmaking using recycled scrap metal, which supports a decentralized, mill-based production model focused on efficiency and flexibility.

Product offerings span a broad range of basic and value‑added steel items, including sheet, plate, merchant bar, structural beams, reinforcing bar, tubing, fasteners and fabricated components.