Nucor (NYSE:NUE) Earns Sector Weight Rating from Analysts at KeyCorp

KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Nucor (NYSE:NUE) in a research report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued a sector weight rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Nucor from $194.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on Nucor from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on Nucor from $183.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Nucor from $182.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $188.90.

Nucor Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Nucor stock opened at $163.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.83. Nucor has a 52 week low of $97.59 and a 52 week high of $196.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $175.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.94.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 8.26% and a net margin of 5.37%.The company’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Nucor will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.71%.

Nucor declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the basic materials company to repurchase up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Nucor

In other Nucor news, EVP Kenneth Rex Query sold 7,452 shares of Nucor stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.02, for a total value of $1,460,741.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 76,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,020,620.56. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Allen C. Behr sold 7,568 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 67,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,763,523.50. This represents a 10.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,401 shares of company stock worth $4,936,152. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nucor

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NUE. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,407,540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,633,554,000 after purchasing an additional 144,038 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Nucor by 3.1% in the second 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 during the period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new position in Nucor in the second quarter worth $856,792,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Nucor by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,853,205 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $628,497,000 after buying an additional 41,728 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at $609,002,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.48% of the company’s stock.

Nucor News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Nucor this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company issued stronger Q1 2026 EPS guidance of $2.70–$2.80 and management noted improving mill backlog and limited direct energy exposure, which analysts say helps insulate results from geopolitical risk. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: UBS upgraded NUE to Buy (price target $190, up from $184), calling the recent pullback an “excessive correction” and a buying opportunity—this provides a high‑profile bullish catalyst and implies ~16% upside to the new PT. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Seaport Research reiterated a Buy and maintained a $185 target following Nucor’s Q1 pre‑announcement, flagging improving profitability expectations. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: KeyCorp initiated coverage on Nucor (coverage initiation can add visibility but impact depends on the assigned rating and model assumptions). Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks industry outlook highlighted Nucor among steel peers—notes mixed demand headwinds but supportive factors like rising steel prices and non‑residential construction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly results fell short of consensus (Q4 EPS $1.73 vs. $1.91 est.; revenue $7.69B vs. $7.93B est.), creating short‑term headwinds. Combined with macro/geopolitical driven risk aversion (Middle East conflict), this helps explain intraday weakness despite the bullish analyst moves.

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.