Brokerages Set Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) PT at $177.27

Shares of Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $177.2727.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nucor in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective (up from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $176.00 target price on shares of Nucor in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Nucor in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Nucor from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 2,003 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.57, for a total transaction of $303,594.71. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 88,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,364,533.18. This represents a 2.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Thomas J. Batterbee sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.28, for a total value of $330,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 17,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,967,106.56. This trade represents a 10.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 25,995 shares of company stock worth $3,990,634 over the last ninety days. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nucor

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Nucor by 51.4% during the second quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. now owns 221 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC increased its stake in shares of Nucor by 281.7% during the third quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC now owns 271 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nucor during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor Stock Up 0.8%

NYSE NUE opened at $181.74 on Friday. Nucor has a 52 week low of $97.59 and a 52 week high of $183.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $41.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.87. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $163.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $149.54.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The basic materials company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $8.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.27 billion. Nucor had a net margin of 5.18% and a return on equity of 7.80%. Nucor’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nucor will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.46%.

About Nucor

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.