UBS Group Upgrades Nucor (NYSE:NUE) to Buy

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) was upgraded by equities researchers at UBS Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday. The brokerage presently has a $190.00 price objective on the basic materials company’s stock. UBS Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 15.22% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Nucor from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $180.00 price target (up from $165.00) on shares of Nucor in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Seaport Research Partners increased their price target on shares of Nucor from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nucor in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Nucor in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.90.

Nucor Stock Performance

Shares of NUE stock opened at $164.91 on Thursday. Nucor has a 12 month low of $97.59 and a 12 month high of $196.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.87, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.83. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $176.26 and its 200 day moving average is $159.31.

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

Nucor announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to repurchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 7,568 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.50, for a total transaction of $1,426,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 67,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,763,523.50. The trade was a 10.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total transaction of $1,460,741.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 76,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,020,620.56. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 26,401 shares of company stock valued at $4,936,152 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nucor

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cornerstone Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,088,000. World Investment Advisors grew its position in Nucor by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 15,721 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,564,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares during the last quarter. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nucor during the fourth quarter worth approximately $256,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nucor by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 63,832 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,417,000 after acquiring an additional 9,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor in the 4th quarter valued at $162,000. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.