Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 124,758 Shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its stake in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 80.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,026 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 124,758 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Nucor were worth $3,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Nucor during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Nucor during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in Nucor by 45.6% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Nucor by 60.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Nucor

In related news, CFO Stephen D. Laxton sold 4,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.53, for a total value of $798,825.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 82,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,923,837.96. This trade represents a 5.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Leon J. Topalian sold 11,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.11, for a total transaction of $1,860,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 172,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,109,918.96. This represents a 6.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 20,680 shares of company stock valued at $3,452,524. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NUE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Nucor from $170.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $156.00 target price (down from $171.00) on shares of Nucor in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Nucor from $240.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Nucor from $152.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Nucor from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nucor has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.63.

Nucor Stock Performance

NYSE:NUE opened at $128.39 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $128.47 and its 200 day moving average is $142.21. The firm has a market cap of $30.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.27 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.51. Nucor Co. has a 52-week low of $112.25 and a 52-week high of $203.00.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The basic materials company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.16 EPS. Research analysts predict that Nucor Co. will post 7.76 EPS for the current year.

Nucor Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. This is a boost from Nucor’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.16%.

Nucor Profile

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.